^// 



THE 

STUDENT'S MANUAL: 



DESIGNED, 

BY SPECIFIC DIRECTIONS, 

TO AID IN 

FORMING AND STRENGTHENING 

THE INTELLECTUAL AND MORAL CHARAC- 
TER AND HABITS 

OF 

THE STUDENT. 



BY REV. JOHN TODD, 

PASTOK OF THE EDWARDS CHURCH, NORTHAMPTON, AUTHOR OF 
LECTURES TO CHILDREN, &C. 



TENTH EDITION. 

NORTHAMPTON : 
PUBLISHED BY J. H. BUTLER. 

PHILADELPHIA, THOMAS, COWPERTHWAIT & CO. BOSTON, 

CROCKER AND BREWSTER. NEW YORK, 

D. APPLETON- AND CO. 

184L 






V % 



Entered, according to Act of Congress, in the year 1835; 

By J. H. Butler. 

In tiie Clerk's Office of the District Court of Massachusetts. 



48 6555 

AUG 2 1942 



-^ ^ 



«w' 



DEDICATION. 



70 



Without attempting to enumerate the kind things 
which might be said in this connection, it is sufficient 
for my purpose to say, that I esteem it a high pleasure 
thus publicly to acknowledge the decided and unob- 
trusive worth of ONE whom I am allowed to number 
among my personal friends — of 

THOMAS NAPIER, ESQ. 

OF 

NORTHAMPTON, MASS. 

TO WHOM 

THIS VOLUME 

IS 
AFFECTIONATELY DEDICATED. 



-? 



PREFACE. 



Hardly any class of men are so difficult to be reached 
as students, and the undertaking is hazardous ; but no 
class of men are so open to conviction, so alive to 
manly principle, so susceptible of good impressions, 
when the effort to aid them is judicious and vi^orthy of 
their attention. Whether the present attempt is a hap- 
py one, the author is not presumptuous enough to say. 
The highest wish of his heart would be to have its re- 
ception and success commensurate with his esteem and 
love for those for whose welfare he feels the strongest 
interest, and for whose benefit he has written. 

Scarcely any hour can be more anxious to the parent 
than that in which he takes leave of his child, after 
having carried him away from home to some public 
Institution for the purpose of study. He knows the 
temptations which will beset his child, without knowing 
any way by which to shield him. I have tried to make 
this book such a friend as he will wish to leave with his 
son, to aid him in forming his character. 

The youth who goe^ from home, and takes his place 
among his fellows at a strange place, for the purpose of 
study, feels that it is all new to him : he is inexperienced, 
and knows not how to form the character which he in- 



6 PREFACE. 

tends to possess. He has no friend who has been over 
the ground, and knows it all, to whom he can go for 
advice, for encouragement, and aid. For such I have 
endeavored to write this book. 

In the different professions, there are multitudes who 
feel that they are not students, havfe not the habits, the 
character of students ; and yet they know not where 
the difficulty is, or what to do. If such do not find 
hints in this volume which will aid and encourage 
them, I shall have deep regrets, and no small morti- 
fication. 

A very few paragraphs in this work will be found in 
an ephemeral Address which the Author delivered be- 
fore one of our colleges a short time since. 

Some may wonder at the taste which has now and 
then interspersed a quotation in Latin. Those who are 
familiar with the taste of students, know how much they 
admire a beautiful thought in beautiful language, and 
how much more highly a nut is relished, if they have to 
crack it. 

Why is not the work more decidedly religious ? Be- 
cause the design of it is to aid in forming the whole 
character of the student. The two last chapters, it is 
hoped, will not be found deficient in this respect. 

May He, without whose blessing every attempt at 
being useful is lost, own it, and make it the instrument 
of much good to those who are the hope of their friends 
and the hope of their country. 

Northampton, May 1, 1835. 



CONTENTS. 



CHAPTER I. 

OBJECT OF STUDY. INTRODUCTORY. 

The mind of man. Ferguson. Why so little accomplished. Want of ex- 
perience in the student. Character acquired while a student indehble. 
Responsibility as to character. For whom writing. Frigate Constitu- 
tion in a storm al sea. Presence of mind. The helmsman. Inference. 
Time and opportunities lost. Savage and cultivated mind compared. 
All capable of excelling. Clavius. The boy on the top of the steeple. 
Eccentricities of character. Folly of expecting to be a genius. Edu- 
cation your own work. Student must labor. Tomaso Anello, the tisher- 
boy. No excellence without toil. The ocean insect. The motto. The 
object of education. A shrewd suspicion. Improve through life. Con- 
centration of thought. Example of abstraction. Appetites and pas- 
sions must be subdued. Necessity of cultivating attention. Example. 
Demosthenes. Patience. Mistaken views on this subject. Benjamin 
Franklin's beginnuig. Example of patience. Student must have a char- 
acter of his own. Folly of being an imitator. Anecdote of Andrew Ful- 
ler. Greatness not to be copied. The judgment must be formed. Wast- 
ing life — remarkable example. Second example. Whatis wanted. Good 
habit — example. The mind will be^r hard usage. Continued efforts. 
Hamilton. President Porter. The two monks. Knowledge of human 
nature necessary. Jonathan Edwards. Who understands human nature 
best? Self-knowledge. Measure yourself Vanity unacceptable. Mod- 
esty of a well-disciplined mind. Memory. Originality not common. 
Originality not necessary. Object of study repeated. Power of mem- 
ory. Away from home. Tediousness of the student's life. Con- 
clusion 13 

CHAPTER II. 

HABITS. 

Power of habit. Easily formed. They are formed by all. It ought to 
be so. How to form a habit. Example. The prisoner. A second ex- 
ample. First direction in regard to habits — have plans. The snow- 
path. How to calculate for a day. Reviewing the day. Character 
formed. A student's day. Second direction — untiring industry. Folio 
volumes. Indian maxim. Who is a blusterer. Who has leisure. Seneca. 
Rutherford. Luther. Jeremiah Evarts. Idleness certain death. Third 
direction — perseverance. Example of the contrary habit. Decision an 



1 CONTENTS. 

attendant on perseverance. Effect of changing plans. Results of perse- 
verance. Habit of putting- off. Charles XII. Fourth direction — fpune- 
tuality. Brougham. Difficult attainment. Why we love a punctucil man. 
Blackstone. Brewer, while a student. Loss by the want of this habit. 
Mistakes made. Fifth direction — early rising. Swift's remark. > For- 
mer times. Curious instance in Buffon. Frederic II. Doddridge. 
Early rest necessary. How to form the habit. The clock. YaJe and 
Amherst Colleges. Many fight against forming the habit. Besetting 
sin. Sixth direction — learn from every thing, Walter Scott. Wisdom 
in a servant girl. Value of this habit. Spencer. Wirt's view of 
this subject. The prmciple illustrated. Seventh direction— ^erf prin- 
ciples. What makes a firm character. The tried shelf Characters 
and books to be classified. The martyr Latimer. Eighth direction — 
personal habits. Tobacco. The " Royal Counterblast." Effects of 
the system. Dress. Change of garments. Economy in dress. Dan-' 
dyism. Alexander's courtiers. The teeth. How preserved. Singu- 
larity. Manners at table. What society demands as to manners. 
Cleanliness. The fable. Ninth direction— rfoing- every thing well. 
Johnson. The prize lost. Common things. Euripides. Buonaparte. 
M'Donough's victory. Tenth direction.^^e77iper. Goldsmith's temper. 
Danger to a student. Manliness. Contentment. Petty troubles. Im- 
aginary inferiority. Reverie. It is common. Sours the feelinp. 
Eleventh direchon— sound judgment. The troublesome watch. Judg- 
ing of your own character. The officer's method. Twelfth direction — 
treatment of friends. Their anxiety. Illustration. Writing to friends. 
Example. Son. Letter from a son. Effects of letter-writing. Choos- 
ing friends. What traits of character necessary. Beautiful maxims. 
Esteem necessary to friendship. Envy not allowed. Friends to be 
chosen for the qualifications of the heart. How to keep friends. What 
the great duty of friendship. Veracity essential. Part of daily habits 
to cultivate friends •• 47 



CHAPTER IIL 

STUDY. 

Study seems easy. Interruptions cannot be avoided. Suggestions. Num- 
ber of hours of study. German students. Severe application. Posi- 
tions of the body. Grimke's plan. Chairs and lights. No conversa- 
tion in study hours. Studying aloud. Thorough. How to conquer a 
country. Inaccurate scholars — how made. The two farms. Exam- 
ple from Moli^re. Example of a thorough scholar. Thoughts to be fol- 
lowed. Translations. Their effects. Expect hard study. President 
Dwight. Testimony of Wirt. How to make practical men. Frank- 
lin's habits. How to think. Brougham's application. No quarrelling 
vwth studies. The chancellor's young horse. Geometry. Philosoph}'. 
Perseverance. The Icelander — a curious example. Excuses for not 
studying hard. Milton. Fuller. How a student is known. Testimo- 
ny of Prof Stuart. Necessity of reviewing. How to commit grammar 
to memory. The jeweller's shop. Wyttenbach's testimony. How to 
review. How far carried. The fog. Necessity illustrated. Quintil- 
ian. Appointed exercises. Pres. Porter's testimony. Punctuality. 
Rest the mind. How done. Illustrated. Example of Dr. Good. The 
old adage untrue, ^ 106 



CONTENTS. 9 

CHAPTER IV. 
READING. 

Brutus. Pliny. Anecdote of Petrarch. Bacon's aphorism. Necessity 
of reading. Remark of President Porter. Queen Caroline. Object of 
reading. How to read to advantage. Must be deliberate. Seneca's 
remark. Ancients had but few books. Scarcity of books in Europe 
formerly. Obstacles in the way of knowledge formerly. Excellence 
of the ancients. We read much. Bad books. Cautions. Their cer- 
tain ruin. Guilt of selling such books. Byron. Danger of such writers- 
Abuse of imagination. A delicate subject. Onanis scelus. Crimen 
commune. Ethnici. Dei ira. Fructus, They cannot live long. 
Moore and Scott. Hume and Paine. Effects of such writings. Chal- 
mers. Edmund Burke. Testimony against novels. How know what 
to read. Standard authors. Read no poor books. How begin to 
read an author. How to know an author. How to read with the 
greatest profit. Marginal marks. Read slow. Reading 'should be 
talked over. Reviewing books. Classification. Index Rerum. News- 
papers and magazines. Reading with pen in the hand. Objects in 
reading. Style. Illustrated. Edwards on the Will. Illustration. 
Stocking the mind with knowledge. Bartholin's remark. Stimulating 
^^^;;;^ the mind. Illustrated. Pleasures of reading. Buying books. . . 13o 

CHAPTER V. 

, TIME. 

Difficulties of the subject. Remark of Seneca. Earl of Chatham's hab- 
its. Minute knowledge. M"st feel the necessity of improving time. 
Johnson's reflections. The Indian 'Gymnosophists. Apuleius. Im- 
aginary examination. Dream continued. Virtuosi. Encouraging art^ 
ists. Buying books. Thieves. First thief — sleep. Sleeping after din- 
ner. Second thief — indolence. Third thief'— sloth. Madame de Genlis. 
Author's experience. Variety grateful to the mind. Erasmus. Fourth 
thief — rdsiting. Fifth thief — reading itseiess books. Novel-clubs. Sixth 
thief — improper study. Whipping dogs. Seventh thief — wearied mind. 
Eighth \}\iei— procrastination. Illustrated. Duke of Newcastle. Ninth 
thief — not completing our plans. Papers of a genius. Order essential. 
Order must be perfect. Trifling pursuits. Nero and those like him. 
The hunting patriarch. Dressing. Diversions. Life may be doubled. 
Locke's observations. Who lives longest. Thought from the proph- 
et. Curious illustration. Turkish story. The exiled king. Kmg re- 
turned. The moral. Who enjoys most. Save the fragments of 
time. What might be done. Necessity of prayer. Evening review. 
Queen Elizabeth. Dr. Young 168 

CHAPTER VI. 

CONVERSATION. 

The evening party. Power of conversation valuable. Agreeable. A 
gift of our Creator. Power of persuasion. Illustrated. Use in ob- 



10 CONTENTS. 

taining information. Matter of study. Floating thought. City inhab- 
itants. Conversation refines the feelings. Conversation a poor substi- 
tute for books. Advantages of the student. Should cultivate his 
powers. First suggestion — talking upon ti-ifie.s. Every circle may 
have profitable conversation. Great minds. Robert Hall. A common 
mistake. Second suggestion — severe speaking. The ichneumon. De- 
tractors. Notion of the Tartars. The cruelty of wit. Illustrated by 
the dying Socrates. A wise remark. Curious example. Flattery, 
lis philosophy. Dr. Johnson's keenness. Goldsmith's character of 
Garrick. Third suggestion — ridicule nothing sacred. The voice of 
experience. Profane language. Lord Chesterfield. The profane 
bishop. Beautiful satire. Fourth suggestion — topics of conversation. 
Not to use your last reading. Illustrated. A contemptible method of 
flattery. Illustrated. Conversation an intellectual feast. Talk about 
yourself as little as possible. Old jests and anecdotes. Saying smart 
things. Spare the weaknesses of-men. Danger of being witty. Exam- 
ple from Gil Bias. How to become a v^dt. Avoid pedantry. Illus- 
trated. Quoting Latin and Greek. Double entendres. Impurity of 
expression. How to use anecdotes. Two cautions. First caution. 
Second caution. Illustrated. Minuteness. Envy to be avoided. No- 
ole example. Cheerfulness. Mason's excellent rules. Temper to be 
preserved. Disputes not proper for company. The responsibility of 
the power of conversation. The student's accountability 194 



CHAPTER VII. 
POLITENESS AND SUBORDINATION. 

The students' supper. Our first impressions. How a polite man is 
treated. National character. Two curious examples. Danger of stu- 
dents. Learned children. Real politeness begins in early life. One dan- 
ger. Danger to religious students. Effects of vacations upon the student's 
politeness. Visiting the ladies. Effects of radicalism upon politeness. 
New England students. Southern manners. Professional men not po- 
lite. Illustrated. The philosophy of the fact. Illustrated by a French 
lady. Politeness always receives attentions. Consistent with inde- 
pendent feelings. Want of it no mark of genius. Clement XIV. 
Hints. Good humor necessary. Kind feelings necessary. Con- 
science must be cultivated. ' Principles of the gospel lead to politeness. 
Cheerfulness essential. Health essential to cheerfulness. Friendship 
cultivates poHteness. Subordination. Subordination a law of 
Heaven. Subordination to the state laws. Laws of friendship. Laws 
of the street. Illustrated. College rebellions. A book needed. Spe- 
cimen of the contents of the new book. Four suggestions. The facul- 
ty are on right principles. Their character is good. Public sentiment 
always in favor of the faculty. Illustrated. The student misses his aim 
in rebelling. Illustrated by the saw-mill. The results of a rebellion 
are ruinous to some. How excitement is produced. A mistaken notion. 
Two reasons why a rebellion is so ruinous. The first reason. A great 
shock received. Diffi(^ult to recover. The second reason. Discipline 
of mind lost. Rebelling a dishonorable business. No need of it. Stu- 
dent's life one of trial 227 



CONTENTS. H 

CHAPTER VIII. 
EXERCISE. DIET. ECONOMY. 

Why exercise is needed. Illustrated. Health every thing to the student. 
Why this necessity is not felt. Henry Kirke White. How the mind 
may be rapidly matured. This not desirable. A fashion in this coun- 
try. Study must endanger health. Who is a hero. The fatigue 
of study. Illustrated. We try to mature too soon. Difficulties which 
prevent exercise. First difficulty. Second difficulty. Third difficulty. 
The manual-labor system. Objections to it. The best exercise for 
the student. Illustrated. The fourth difficulty. How to meet this diffi- 
culty. Exercise must be regular. Must be agreeable. It should relax 
the mind. Cardinal De Retz. Exercise to be increased at particular 
times. Professional men. Paul. Illustrious men have labored with 
the hands. Examples. Summary of the advantages of exercise. Mind 
strengthened by exercise. Confirmation. Diet. Students fickle on this 
subject. Dryden's account of the first diseases. Hints on diet. Diet 
must correspond with exercise. Fasting. Effects of our habits. Dr. 
Spring's prescription. Regularity of diet. Simplicity in diet. Singu- 
lar instance of one indulgence. Stimulating drinks. Bad effects upon 
the student. Economy. Most of our students are indigent. Indigence 
no injury to a student. Johnson and Savage. Poverty of Savage. Ad- 
vantages of indigence. Illustrated by men now on the stage. Should 
riot be ashamed of poverty. Be anxious to keep out of debt. What to 
do if debts are absolutely necessary. Not consult taste in purchases. 
Do not buy because the thing is cheap. Temptation of buying books. 
Form habits of economy for life. No mark of genius to be careless in 
regard to debts. Make your expenses a matter of conscience. . . . 260 

CHAPTER IX. 

DISCIPLINE OF THE HEART. 

A designed omission. An early duty. Infidel notions. What sort of 
men are infidels ? Testimony of one who had been an infidel. No 
safety in opinions if religious views are loose. The mind of an infidel 
cannot make much impression. Settle your religious views early. No 
one can be safe without fixed principles. Resolutions of Edwards. 
Resolutions of a distinguished man. A common prejudice among stu- 
dents. Religion exalts the m.ind. Means of disciplining the heart. 
First suggestion. Every thing may contribute to it. Every event de- 
signed for moral discipline. Second suggestion. Cultivate the conscience. 
Use of a cultivated conscience. Illustrations. How the greatest efforts 
of the mind can be called forth. Thoughts at a grave. We must meet 
with temptations. They are constant. Examples of temptations. 
Third suggestion. Avoid temptation. Easily-besetting temptations. 
Companions. Conversation. Particular seasons. Particular associa- 
tions. Vile reading. Little failings. Natural temperament. Beware 
of temptations to which you naturally incline. Fourth suggestion. 
Temper. Example of a subdued temper. Temper may be cultivated. 
Roger Sherman. His patience. Remarkable example of a subdued 
temper. Necessity of attending to the temper. Example of Sir Wal- 
ter Raleigh. Irritability of the temper. Fifth suggestion. Improve- 
ment of thoughts when alone. Cautions. Advantages of being alone. 



12 CONTENTS. 

The future to be anticipated. Your own teacher. Study your own 
character. You will find deficiencies. Who are your flatterers 1 No 
other way but by meditation to correctly understand the Divine character. 
Sixth suggestion. Daily reading the word of God. Mungo Park. Two 
revelations from heaven. A parallel between them. ^ Inspired eulogy. 
Uninspired eulogy. Sir William Jones. Comprehaisiveness of the 
Bible. The Scriptures must be read daily. Example of Elizabeth. 
Locke. Hints for reading the Bible. First hint. Second hini— trans- 
lation to be tised. The Book of Proverbs. Third hint — disposition. 
Difficulties in reading the Scripture. Fourth hmt— responsibility. Why 
you may not neglect the Scripture. Seventh suggestion. Faithful re- 
viewing. Sickness. Changes in circumstances. Examinationof the heart 
on Sabbath evening. A help suggested. Use of dreams upon moral 
character. Review at night important. Eflfects of the evening review. 
The dying heathen philosopher. Eighth suggestion. Daily prayer. 
Students especially need prayer. Excuse of having no time. Hints in 
regard to prayer. Regular hours. Morning and evening the best times 
for devotion. Examples of praying men. Conscience to be kept pure- 
Excuse of not being a Christian examined. Pray in Christ's njune. Ask 
for the Holy Spirit 329 

CHAPTER X. 

THE OBJECT OF LIFE. 

Pictures of the imagination. Visions of good men. Our visions a test of 
character. The youth returning from a whaling-voyage. The dying 
thought of Hooker. The world under an immense mistake. The army 
of Xerxes. The crusade. Peter the Hermit. A wonderful example of 
avarice. Ancient kingdoms. Experiment of paganism. The experi- 
ment of the Romish church. Fate of Galileo. The spirit of war uni- 
versal. Career of Buonaparte. A striking contrast supposed. Esti- 
mation in which war is now held. A horse-race. Prostitution of mind 
unlamented. The hopes of each generation of men. The world left 
to sink. Who is great ? Individual examples. The merchant. The 
politician. The refined scholar. Thought of Pascal. Ever}- one has 
an object. The appetites and passions. Seeking after wealth. Life 
of ambition. The vexations of the ambitious man. Admiration short- 
lived. Difficulties in sustaining a reputation. No one satisfied with 
his reputation. Restlessness of ambition. Example of a disappointed 
man of ambition. Curious example. Character of fame. The worth 
of ambition imaginary. By expelling this principle we do not leave 
the heart empty. We need a high motive of action. What it is. A high 
standard is practicable. Illustrations. Examples of a wrong sta,ndard. 
Example of the right standard. We have the power of selecting the 
object. What is duty. Testimony of reason. Testimony of con- 
science. Advantages of the true standard. The soul is filled. Engross- 
es the whole heart. Conquers sin. Leads to activity. Shows valuable 
resuhs. No waste of efforts. Ensures the approbation of conscience. Ob- 
tains the approbation of the world. Obtains the approbation of Heaven. 
The dj^ing mother. Feelings of an author in closing his book. How 
the reader is entreated to act. State of the world. Much depends on 
students. Circumstances in which we are called to act. Responsibility 
of our situation. Power of reaching men. The Bible the great instru- 
ment. Encouragements to action. Rewards of a life well spent. 
Conclusion 350 



^ /I J ■ 

7; 



THE 



STUDENT'S MANUAL 



CHAPTER I. ^ 



OBJECT OF STUDY. INTRODUCTORY. 

The human mind is the brightest display of the 
power and skill of the Infinite Mind with which we 
are acquainted. It is created and placed in this world 
to be educated for a higher state of existence. Here 
its faculties begin to unfold, and those mighty ener- 
gies, which are to bear it forward to unending ages, 
begin to discover themselves. The objtct of training 
such a mind should be, to enable the soul to fulfil her 
duties well here, and to stand on high vantage-ground, 
when she leaves this cradle of her being, for an eter- 
nal existence beyond the grave. 

There is now and then a youth, who, like Fergu- 
son, can tend sheep in the field, and there accurately 
mark the position of the stars, with a thread and beads, 
and with his knife construct a watch from wood ; but 
such instances are rare. Most need encouragement to 
sustain, instruction to aid, and directions to guide them. 



14 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Why so little accomplished. Want of experience in the student. 

Few, probably, ever accomplish any thing like as 
much as they expected or ought ; and I have thought 
that one reason is, that students waste a vast amount 
of time in acquiring that experience which they need. 
As I look back upon the days when I was a " student,'' 
1 can see that here I went wrong, and there I mistook ; 
here I missed a golden opportunity, and there I ac- 
quired a wrong habit, or received a wrong bias ; and as 
I sometimes walk past a college, as it is lighted up for 
evening-study, I pause, and sigh, that I cannot go back 
and begin life again, carrying with me my present 
experience. I think, too, I can see, that if there had 
been such a book as I am now attempting to write for 
students, put into my hands at an early period, i^ 
would have been of incalculable advantage to me. I 
have strong hopes of saying what will be useful, in- 
asmuch as I shall principally draw from my own expe- 
rience and from the remembrance of my own wants. 

The reader will please to bear in mind, that the 
only object I have in view, is to be useful to him — 
to throw out such hints and cautions, and to give such 
specific directions, as will aid him to become all that 
the fond hopes of his friends anticipate, and all that 
his own heart ought to desire. 

I would here say to the student, that the charactof 
v/hich he now forms and sustains, will cling to him 
through life. Young men always receive impressions 
concerning each other which nothing can ever efface. 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 15 

Character acquired while a student. 

The very nicknames which are given at this period, 
and which are generally indicative of some peculiar 
trait of character, will never be forgotten. His moral 
and intellectual character, while young, is that by 
which his class-mates, especially, will invariably meas- 
ure him through life. Is he unamiable now, or indo- 
lent now, or vicious now ? Depend upon it, his char- 
acter is stamped, and no subsequent years of good- 
nature, or of application, or of moral worth, can ever 
do away the impressions which he is now making. 
Ask any educated man about the character of his 
fellow, and you will notice, that he at once goes 
back to his College-life, and dates and judges from 
that period. Thus, every anecdote, every ludicrous 
circumstance, whether it was a mistake in reciting, or 
in judgment, or in moral conduct, will be repeated 
over the land, and his frailties will be known as 
widely as his class is scattered. 

No mistake can be more decided than that of sup- 
posing that you are now retired from the world, have 
no character to maintain, and no responsibility resting 
upon you. It is far otherwise. And it is peculiarly 
trying, that, during the very period when the character 
is forming, it is viewed by all around you as if it 
were already and unalterably formed, and judged of 
accordingly. He, who now sits by your side in the 
recitation-room, has every trait of your character ex- 
posed to his view ; and he will remember every trait, 



16 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Responsibility as to character. For whom writing, 

and he will mark you through Hfe, at the place where 
you now stand. Never, in fact, does so great a re- 
sponsibility rest upon you, as while a student ; because 
you are now forming your character and habits, and 
setting your standard ; and because, also, your contem- 
poraries will seldom, if ever, alter their judgment con- 
cerning you. If you are stupid and inaccurate during 
this period, though you should hereafter write dic- 
tionaries, and edit classics, and dream in foreign lan- 
guages, I very much doubt whether your friend, now 
at your elbow, would ever give you credit for any thing 
higher than dullness. 

Doubtless multitudes are now in the process of 
education, who will never reach any tolerable stand- 
ard of excellence. Probably some never could ; but 
in most cases they might. The exceptions are few ; 
and probably most, who read these pages, do feel a 
desire, more or less strong, of fitting themselves for 
respectabihty and usefulness. They are, however, 
ignorant of the way ; they are surrounded by tempta- 
tions and dangers; they soon forget the encourage- 
ments, and thus oscillate between hope and fear, res- 
olution and discouragement. It is for such that I 
write. And such I earnestly entreat not to lay aside 
this little book till they have read it, weighed it, and, 
if they please, called the writer w^hatever hard names 
occur to them. My pen will probably sometimes 
seem dull ; but if it should, I hope 1 may apologize for 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 17 

Frigate Constitution in a storm at sea. 

it as the knight did for his slow-pacing horse : — " Hee 
. is a rite gude creetur, and travels all the ground over 
most faithfully.'' 

" When 1 turned in at night, the sea was smooth and 
bright as a mirror ; the vast firmament seemed to de- 
scend below us ; the ship appeared to be suspended 
in the centre of an immense sphere, and, if I may say 
so, one felt, in awe and silence, the majesty of space. 
The sails hung idly by the mast, and the officers' 
tread along the deck was the only sound heard. So 
I left them. 

"About midnight, I was awakened by a heavy swing 
of my cot, succeeded by a sudden dash to the other 
side : the water was pouring into our room, and I 
could hear its rush across the upper decks, where all 
was noise and rapid motion. I hurried on my clothes, 
and ran up : the gun-deck was clear ; hammocks had 
already been lashed up and stowed ; it was hghted up, 
and showed it flooded in its whole extent. I ascend- 
ed to the next : the rain came down in torrents, but I 
did not feel it, so deeply absorbing was the scene. I 
wish I could describe it. The sky was in a constant 
blaze ; the sea was not high, but broken, confused 
and foaming, and taking from the lightning an un- 
natural hue. Above me were the yards covered with 
human beings, thrown by each flash into strong out- 
line, struggling hard to secure the canvass and to 
maintain their precarious footing. The ship rolled 
2 



18 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Presence of mind. 

tremendously. And now add the wild uproar of the 
elements, ' the noise of many waters/ the deep and 
constant roar of the winds, the cries of the men aloft, 
the heavy and rapid tread of those below," the reite- 
rated commands of officers, and, rising above all this, 
the firm and composed orders of the trumpet, and 
then add to this the heavy-rolling thunder, at times 
drowning all these sounds. The first lieutenant had 
the deck : he had sprung to it at the first alarm, and, 
seizing the trumpet, had called Black, his favorite 
helmsman. The ship was soon under snug sail, and 
now dashed onward at a furious rate, giving to the 
gale a yet wilder character. 

"All at once a rocky island seemed to start up from 
the water ; but the next broad flash showed a good off- 
ing, and we were safe; when suddenly came a loud shout 
from the forecastle — '^A sail close on the larboard bow, 
sir.' I trembled then — not for ourselves, for we 
should have gone over them, and have scarcely felt 
the shock — ^but for the poor wretches whom it would 
have been impossible to save. The helm was put 
hard down : we shot by, and I again breathed freely, 
when some one bade me look up to our spars. I did 
so, and found every upper yard-arm and mast tipped 
with lightning. Each blaze was twice as large as 
that of a candle ; and thus we flew on, with the ele- 
ments of destructiofi playing above our heads." 

Can any one read this beautiful description of one 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 19 

The helmsman. Inference. 

of our own proud ships in a storm, and fail to reflect, 
that discipline is the hfe and salvation of such a ship 
in such a storm ? But I have copied it for a different 
purpose ; and that is, to call the attention of the reader 
*a single moment to the '' helmsman Bkck." Can 
there be a doubt but the sailor who couW take the 
helm in th^se circumstances, and hold the hLip firmly 
on her course amid the storm, shunning rocks, and 
just shooting by smaller vessels, must have courage, 
presence of mind, and great promptness of character ? 
Or can there be a doubt, but, if he had been properly 
educated when young, he might have stood in the 
lieutenant's place, and held the trumpet, or even com- 
manded the ship ? It is my earnest wish to aid such 
as have capacity, in seizing the present moment, and, 
while they have the opportunity, in so laying their 
plans, and in so forming their sfeabits, as to make the 
most of all their endowments. There are, doubtless, 
some who will read these pages without benefit. 
May I suggest a possible reason ? "A mole, having 
consulted many oculists for the benefit of his sight, 
was at last provided with a good pair of spectacles ; 
but, upon his endeavoring to make use of them, his 
mother told him, that, though they might help the 
eye of a man, the}^ could be of no use to a mo/e.'* 

You may converse with any man, however distin- 
guished for attainments or habits of application, or 
power of using what he knows, and he will sigh over 



20 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Time and opportunities lost. Savage and cultivated mind compared. 

the remembrances of the past, and tell you, that there 
have been many fragments of time which he has 
wasted, and many opportunities which he has lost 
forever. If he had only seized upon the fleeting ad- 
vantages, and gathered up the fragments of time, he 
might have pushed his researches out into new fields, 
and, like the immortal Bacon, have amassed vast 
stores of knowledge. The mighty minds which have 
gone before us, have left treasures for our inher- 
itance, and the choicest gold ,is to be had for the 
digging. How great the dissimilarity between a na- 
ked Indian, dancing with joy over a new feather for 
his head-dress, and such a mind as that of Newton or 
of Boyle ! And what makes the difference ? There 
is mind enough in the savage ; he can almost outdo 
die instincts of the prey which he hunts ; but his 
soul is like the marbje pillar. There is a beautiful 
statue in it, but the hand of the sculptor has never 
laid the chisel upon it. That mind of the savage has 
never been disciplined by study ; and it, therefore, in 
the comparison, appears like the rough bison of the 
forest, distinguished only for strength and ferocity. 

I am not now to discuss the question whether the 
souls of men are naturally equal. If they are, it is 
certain that, though the fact were proved, it would be 
of little practical use, since the organization of bodies 
is so different, that no training can make them alike. 
But this, I think, may safely be affirmed, that every 



THE STUDENIS MANUAL. 21 

All capable of excelling-. Cla^'ius. The boy on the top of the steeple. 

one has naturally the power of excelling in some one 
thing. You may not excel in mathematics, or as a 
writer, or a speaker ; but I honestly believe that every 
one of my readers is capable of excelling in some de- 
partment, and will surely do so, if faithful to himself. 

There was once a boy* put under the care of the 
Jesuits, who was noted for nothing but his stupidity. 
These teachers tried him abundantly, and could make 
nothing of him. How little did they think that the 
honor of being his instructers was to raise their order 
in view of the world ! At length, one of the fathers 
tried him in geometry, which so suited his genius, 
that he became one of the first mathematicians of his 
age. Marcus, the son of Cicero, was sent to Athens, 
and had all the first masters that could be procured ; 

and he made a perfect- blockhead. And yet I 

feel confident, that, had the right place been found for 
him, he would have been more than respectable in it. 
Non omnes omnia possumus. 

1 once saw a httle boy, on a public occasion, while 
thousands were gazing at him with unaffected aston- 
ishment, climb the lightning-rod on the lofty spire of 
a meeting-house. The wind blew high, and the rod 
shook and trembled ; but up he went, till he had 
reached the vane, 195 feet high. All, every moment, 
expected to see him fall. But what was our amaze- 

* Clavius, who died 1612, aged 75. His works were iu 5 vols, 
folio, and greatly admired. 



22 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Eccentricities of character. Folly of expecting to be a genius. 

ment to see him mount the vane, and place his Httle 
feet upon it, throwing his arms aloft in the air, and 
turning round, as the wind turned his shaking foot-hold ! 
He stood there till weary, and came down at his lei- 
sure. Here was a mind capable, I doubt not, of high 
enterprise. And yet he has never been heard of since. 
And- why not ? Either his mind has not been culti- 
vated, or else his genius has been bent out of its prop- 
er channel. I will just add, that the poor boy was 
fined for setting so dangerous an example before the 
boys who saw him ; but I could not help wishing that, 
while they sought to restrain him from such physical 
daring, they had been as careful to direct his fearless 
genius in a proper channel. 

I perceive I have used a dangerous word, though 
of great antiquity. The word is genius. Many train 
themselves into habits of eccentricity and oddity, and 
suppose these inseparable from genius. There are 
some men who think nothing so characteristic of 
genius, as to do common things in an uncommon way 
— like Hudibras, to tell the clock hy algebra, or like 
the lady in Dr. Young's Satires, " to drink tea by 
stratagem." Dean Swift, in his celebrated Travels, 
found whole nations of these geniuses, and tells us 
that he observed a tailor, with a customer before him, 
whose measure for a coat he was taking with a quad- 
rant ! Never set up any pretensions for a genius, nor 
lay claim to the character. But few such are bom 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 23 

Education must be your own work. 

into the world ; and of those few, though envied 
greatly, and imitated as greatly, but very few, indeed, 
leave the world wiser or better than they found it. 
The object of hard study is not to draw out geniuses, 
but to take minds such as are formed in a common 
mould, and fit them for active and decisive usefulness. 
Nothing is so much coveted by a young man as the 
reputation of being a genius ; and many seem to feel 
that the want of patience for laborious application and 
deep research, is such a mark of genius as cannot be 
mistaken : while a real genius, like Sir Isaac New- 
ton, with great modesty says, that the great and only 
difference between his mind and the minds of others, 
consisted solely in his having more patience. You. 
may have a good mind, a sound judgment, or a vivid 
imagination, or a wide reach of thought and of views ; 
but, beheve me, you probably are not a genius, and 
can never become distinguished without severe appli- 
cation. Hence, all that you ever have, must be the 
result of labor — hard, untiring labor. You have 
friends to cheer you on ; you have books and teach- 
ers to aid you, and multitudes of helps. But, after 
all, disciplining and educating your mind must be your 
own work. No one can do this but yourself. And 
nothing in this world is of any worth, which has not 
labor and toil as its price. The zephyrs of summer 
can but seldom breathe around you. " I foresee, dis- 
tinctly, that you will have to double Cape Horn in 



^4 ■ THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 



Tomaso Anello, the fisher-boy. 

the winter-season, and to grapple with the gigantic 
spirit of the storm which guards the cape ; and 1 fore- 
see, as distinctly, that it will depend entirely on your 
own skill and energy, whether you survive the fearful 
encounter, and live to make a port in the mild lati- 
tudes of the Pacific." * 

Johnson asserts, that, if any one would be master 
of the English language, he must give his days and 
nights to the reading of Addison. It is still more 
emphatically true, that, if any one would be distin- 
guished, he must labor for it. There is no real ex- 
cellence without patient study. Those who have 
now and then risen upon the world, without education? 
and without study, have shed but a doubtful light, and 
that but for a moment. Many a youth has kindled 
at the story of Tomaso Anello, who was one day 
hawking fish through the streets of Naples, and the 
next was master of armies and fleets, and made his 
will the rule for an empire. The army obeyed him ; 
the banditti quailed before him ; and^never was a man 
more absolute in his will. But his short reign of nine 
days was marked with great folly, cruelty, and despot- 
ism ; and such examples must ever stand before the 
world as among the possible things ; but also among 
the improbable, and still more undesirable. 

Set it down as a fact, to which there are no excep- 
tions, that we must labor for all |:hat we have, and 

* Wirt. 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 25 

No excellence without toil. The-oceaii insect. The motto. 

that nothing is worth possessing or offering to others, 
which cost us nothing. Gilbert Wakefield tells us, 
that he wrote his own Memoirs (a large octavo) in 
six or eight days. It cost him nothing ; and, what is 
very natural, it is worth nothing. You might yawn 
scores of such books into existence ; but who would 
be the wiser or the better ? We all like gold, but 
dread the digging. The cat loves the fish, but will 
not wade to catch them ; — amat jfisces, sed non vuli 
tingere plant as. 

Those islands which so beautifully adorn the Pa- 
cific, and which, but for sin, would seem so many 
Edens, were reared up from the bed of the ocean by 
the little coral-insect, which deposits one grain of 
sand at a time, till the whole of those piles are reared 
up. Just so with human exertions. "The greatest 
results of the mind are produced by small, but contin- 
ued efforts. I have frequently thought of the motto 
of one of the most distinguished scholars in this coun- 
try, as peculiarly appropriate. As near as I remem- 
ber, it is the picture of a mountain, with a man at its 
base, with his hat and coat lying beside him, and a 
pickaxe in his hand ; and as he digs, stroke by stroke, 
his patient look corresponds with his words, — Peu et 
peu — " Little by little." 

The first, and great object of education is, toi disci- 
pline the mind. It is naturally, hke the colt, wild and 



26 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

The object of education. A shrewd suspicion. 

imgoverned. Let any man, who has not subdued his 
mind, more or less, by close thought, sit down and 
take hold of a subject, and try to " think it out." 
The result will be, that he cannot hold his thoughts 
upon the point. They fly off— they wander away. 
He brings them back, and determines now to hold his 
attention there ; when, at once, ere he knows how, he 
again finds himself away. The process is repeated, 
till he gives it up in discouragement, or else goes to 
sleep. I once heard a young man complaining that 
he could not keep his mind fixed on a point. " It 
rolled off hke a barrel from a pin ; " and he gave some 
hints that possibly it might be that his mind was so 
great ! His gravity altogether eifceeded that of his 
associates, to whom he was giving the explanation. 
How many great minds would there be, if such indi- 
cations were to be relied on ! 

In the period which belongs to you as a student, 
then, it is not important that you should try to lay up 
a vast amount of information. Under the chapter on 
reading, I shall hope to throw out such hints as will 
enable you to save what you do read. The object 
now is, to fit the mind for future acquisitions and fu- 
ture usefulness. The magazine will be filled soon 
enough ; and we need not be too anxious to fill it 
while we are getting it ready for use. I am desirous 
that you have it strongly impressed on the memory 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 2T 

Improve through life. Concentration of thought. 

that the great object now is, to set the mind out on a 
course which she can successfiihy pursue herself, and 
that, too, through Hfe. 

You must calculate to improve through life ; and, 
therefore, now try to form habits of study, and learn 
how to study to advantage. '' Newton was in his 
eighty-fifth year improving his Chronology ; and Wal- 
ler, at eighty-two, is thought to have lost none of his 
poetical fire." 

Make it the first object to be able to fix and hold 
your attention upon your studies. He who can do this, 
has mastered many and great difficulties ; and he who 
cannot do it, will in vain look for success in any de- 
partment of study. " To effect any purpose in study, 
the mind must be concentrated. If any other object 
plays on the fancy than that which ought to be ex- 
clusively before it, the mind is divided, and both are 
neutrahzed, so as to lose their effect — just as when 
I learned two systems of short-hand : I was familiar 
with Gurney's method, and wrote it with ease ; but 
when I took it into my head to learn Byrom's, they 
destroyed each other, and I could write neither." 
What is commonly called abstraction in study, is 
nothing more than having the attention so completely 
occupied with the subject in hand, that the mind takes 
notice of nothing without itself. One of the greatest 
minds which this, or any other country, ever produ- 
ced, has been known to be so engrossed in thinking on 



28 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL 

Example of abstraction. Necessity of attention. 

a particular subject, that his horse has waded through 
the corner of a pond, yet, though the water covered 
the saddle, he was wholly insensible to the cause of 
his being wet. I mention this, not to recommend such 
an abstraction, but to show, that he who has his atten- 
tion fixed, and the power of fixing it when he pleases, 
-will be successful in study. Need I say here, that 
you can never command the attention, if you are in 
the habit of yielding to your appetites and passions? 
" No man," says one who knew, " whose appetites 
are his masters, can perform the duties of his nature 
with strictness and regularity. He that would be su- 
perior to external influence, must first become superior 
to his own passions." Why does the boy, who has a 
large sum upon his slate, scowl, and rub out, and be- 
gin again, and grow discouraged ? Because he has 
not yet learned to command his attention. He was 
going on well, when some new thought flashed into 
his mind, or some new object caught his eye, and he 
lost the train of calculation. Why has that Latin or 
Greek word so puzzled you to remember, that you 
have had to look it out in your dictionary some ten or 
dozen times ? And why do you now look at it as at 
a stranger, whose name you ought to know, but which 
you cannot recall ? Because you have not yet ac- 
quired fully the power of fixing your attention. That 
word would have been remembered long since, if it 
had not passed as a shadow before your mind when 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 29 

Example. Demosthenes. 

you looked at it. A celebrated authoress, who states 
that she reserves all her i's to be dotted, and her t'= 
to be crossed, on some sick day, might have given a 
more philosophical reason ; and that is, that she could 
not bear to have her attention interrupted a single 
moment, when writing with the most success. 

The difficulty of confining the. attention is probably 
the secret of the plan of Demosthenes, who shut him- 
self up in his celebrated dark cave for study ; and 
this will account for the fact, that a person who is.un- 
expefctedly deprived of the use of his eyes, will not 
unfrequently make advances in thought, and show a 
strength of mind, unknown before. I have frequently 
seen boys take their books on a summer's day, and 
flee fiom their room to the grove, and from the grove 
back again, full of u^rfasiness, and in vain hoping that 
changing the place would give them some new power 
over the roving attention, and that indescribable rest- 
lessness, so inseparable from the early efforts to sub- 
due the mind. It is all in vain. You cannot fly from 
yourself; and the best way is to sit directly down in 
your room, and there command your attention to fix 
itself upon the hard, dry lesson, and master it ; and, 
when you have thus Drought this rover to obey you 
once, he will be more ready to obey the next time. 
Attention will more readily come at your call to- 
morrow than to-day. 

Faiience is a virtue kindred to attention j ' and with- 



30 The STUDENT'S manual. 

Patience. Mistaken views on this subject. 

out it, the mind cannot be said to be disciplined. Pa- 
tient labor and investigation are not only essential to 
success in study, but are an unfailing guarantee to 
success. The young man is in danger of feeling '' that 
he will strike out something new. His spirits are 
buoyant and his hopes sanguine." He knows not the 
mortified feeling of being repeatedly defeated by him- 
self. He will burst upon the world at once, and 
strike the blows of a giant, while his arm is that of a 
child. He is not to toil up the hill, and wait for years 
of self-discipline, close, patient study, and hard labor — 
not he ; but before you know it, he will be on the 
heights of the highest Alps, with a lofty feeling, look- 
ing down upon the creepers below. Hence, multi- 
tudes waste life, and absolutely fritter away their ex- 
istence, in doing nothing, excepfl ivaiting .for a golden 
opportunity to do something great and magnificent. 
Did not Patrick Henry burst upon the world at once, 
and at once exhibit the strength of a giant ? If he 
did, he is no specimen of ordinary minds, and no man 
has a right to presume upon any thing more than an 
intellect of ordinary dimensions as his own. What 
multitudes of men lie still, and never lift the pen, be- 
cause the time is not come ! When they come out, 
it must be in a " great book," a splendid address, or 
some great effort. The tree must not be allowed to 
grow by inches ; no, at once the sapling must be 
loaded with the fruit of the tree of threescore years. 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 'SI 

Benjamin Franklin's beg'inning'. Example of patience 

Alas ! trees planted and watered by such expecta- 
tions will never be more than dwarfs. FranMin rose 
high, and his name is engraven deep and fair on the 
roll of immortality; but he began his greatness by 
making an almanac : he continued to make it foe 
years, and rose, step by step, till he was acknowledged 
at the head of modern philosophers. Every young 
man ought to remember that he who would carry the 
ox, must every day shoulder the calf. Ferret taurum 
qui tulit vitulam. That great man, who returned to 
his study, and, finding that his little dog had turned 
over the table, and burned up the papers on which 
he had been engaged for years, yet calmly said, 
"You have done me a great mischief. Diamond," 
showed a soul truly great ; and its greatness, in this 
instance, consisted in his patience. Without a mur- 
mur, he sat down, and began to do over the same 
great labor. He lived to complete it ; and it was the 
admiration of the learned world. Yet how few have 
the patience thus to sit down and labor day by day 
for years ! It is neither a small nor an easy part of 
education to cultivate this trait of character. 

The student should learn to think and act for Mm- 
self. True originality consists in doing things well, 
and doing them in your own way. A mind half- 
educated is generally imitating others. "No man 
was ever great by imitation." One great reason is, 
that it is. so much easier to copy the defects and the 



3'Z THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Student must have a character of his own. Folly of being an imitator, 

objectionable parts of a great man's character, than to 
imitate his excellences, that we gain only the former. 
Alexander the Great had a foolish tutor, who used to 
call him Achilles. He was taught to admire that 
character. But when he came to imitate Achilles, 
what did he do ? He imitated one of the most cruel 
and detestable actions in that hero's life. He dragged 
the governor of a town through the streets after his 
chariot. This was because the foolish teacher Ly- 
simachus taught him to imitate as well as admire. It 
has been more than strongly conjectured, that France 
murdered her king, the inoffensive and amiable 
Louis XVI., because England once beheaded a 
king! Strange, that even nations cannot become 
imitators without copying that which is atrocious! 
Not a few waste their lives, and lose all discipline and 
improvement, by an insensible and unconscious habit 
of imitating others. Of the multitudes who imitated 
Johnson, was there one who had any thing more than 
his pompous, inflated language? They seemed to 
feel that they were wielding the club of Hercules ; but 
the club, in every instance, was hollow, and the blow 
resulted in nothing but sound. Of the many who 
tried to follow in the wake of Byron, is there one who 
will live in song ? Not one. They could copy noth- 
ing but his measure and his wickedness, borrowing 
his vileness without his genius. The lion himself is 
fast turning to corruption, but no honey will be found 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 33 

Anecdote of Andrew Fuller. Greatness not to be copied. 

in the carcass ; and as for his followers, the world was 
relieved from their curse by their decaying before 
they could taint the moral atmosphere. It is vastly 
more, easy to imitate and borrow, both matter and man- 
ner, than to have them of your own. But set it 
down, that no imitator ever reached any thing like 
eminence. You must have a character of your own, 
and rules by which that character is regulated. It 
has been said of Franklin, that he was a philosopher, 
because, in his childhood, he formed those rules which 
regulated him even in old age. " My father," says 
Andrew Fuller, '' was a farmer ; and, in my younger 
days, it was a great boast among the ploughmen that 
they could plough a straight line across the furrows or 
ridges of the field. I thought I could do this as well 
as any of them. One day, I saw such a line, which 
had just been drawn, and I thought, ' Now I have it.' 
Accordingly I laid hold of the plough, and, putting 
one of the horses into the furrow which had just been 
made, I resolved to keep him walking in it, and thus 
secure a parallel line. By and by, however, I ob- 
served that there were what might be termed wriggles 
in this furrow ; and when I came to them, they turned 
out to be larger in mine than in the original. On 
perceiving this, I threw the plough aside, and determin- . 
ed never to be an imitator J^ Let it be remembered that 
v^e cannot copy greatness or goodness by any effort. 
We must acquire it by our own patience and dili- 
3 



34 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

3F ; 

The judgment must be formed. Wasting life — remarkable example 

gence. Nil sine magno vita labore dedit mor- 
talibus. 

Another object of study is, to form the judgment, so 
that the mind can not only investigate, but weigli and 
balance opinions and theories. Without this, you 
will never be able to decide what to read or what to 
throw aside ; what author to distrust, or what opinions 
to receive. Some of the most laborious men, and dil- 
igent readers, pass through life without accomplishing 
any thing desirable, for the want of what may be 
called a well-balanced judgment. The last theory 
which they hear is the true one, however deficient as 
to proof from facts ; the last book they read is the 
most wonderful, though it may be worthless ; the last 
acquaintance is the most valuable, because least is 
known about him. Hence multitudes of objects are 
pursued, which have no use in practical life ; and 
there is a laborious trifling — operose nihil agendo — 
which unfits the mind for any thing valuable. It 
leads to a wide field, which is barren and waste. '' I 
once saw a shepherd," says an Italian author, " who 
used to divert himself, in his solitudes, with tossing up 
eggs and catching them again without breaking them ; 
in which he had arrived to so great a degree of per- 
fection, that he would keep up four at a time for sev- 
eral minutes together, 'playing in the air and falling 
into his hands by turns. I think I never saw greater 
severity than in this man's face ; for, by his wonder- 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 35 

Second example. What is wanted. 

fill perseverance and application, he had contracted 
the seriousness and gravity of a privy-counsellor ; and 
I could not but reflect with myself, that the same as- 
siduity and attention, had they been rightly applied, 
might have made him a greater mathematician than 
Archimedes." 

1 have known a boy- — and such cases are not rare — 
spend time enough in learning to read with the book 
bottom upwards — which he did with great fluency — 
to have made him acquainted with all the minutiae of 
the Latin grammar. This is not merely time wasted, 
but it is cultivating a taste for out-of-the-way things 
and useless acquirements. It is no small part of ed- 
ucation and of study, to know what you do, and what 
you do not, wish to know. 

If, by any thmg I have said, an impression has been 
made that I do not deem it necessary for a man to be 
familiar with a wide circle of knowledge, in order to 
become known, influential, and useful, 1 trust such an 
impression will be corrected before the reader closes 
this book. What I wish to say here, is, that the great 
object of the student is, to prepare his mind to use 
materials which may hereafter be gatlipred ; but not 
now to gather them. One of the most distinguished 
men of this age and nation, whose voice has bten 
heard in lands distant from ours, is said to be remark- 
able for this'faculty — that, when he wants infor.r.a- 
tion on any subject, he seems to know, intuitively, who 



36 ' THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Good habit. Example. The mind will bear hard usage. 

and what shall be laid under, immediate tribute. He 
does not pore over all that this or that man has writ- 
ten, but gets light from all quarters, and then, like the 
burning-glass, condenses and brings to a focus all the 
light and heat which are necessary to consume obsta- 
cles and objections. Such a habit is worth all the 
scraps of learning and information which could be laid 
up in a mind which knows of no use in knowledge 
but the pleasure which it affords while in the act of 
acquiring. 

The great instrument of affecting the world is the 
mind ; and no instrument is so decidedly and contin- 
ually improved by exercise and use, as the mind. 
Many seem to feel as if it were not safe to put forth 
all their powers at one effort. You must reserve your 
strength for great occasions, just as you would use 
your horse — ^moderately and carefully on common oc- 
casions, but give him the spur on occasions of great 
emergency. This might be well, were the mind, in 
any respect, like the bones and muscles of the horse. 
Some, when they are contriving to see how little 
mental effort will answer, and how far and wide a few 
feeble thoughts may be spread, seem more like stu- 
dents than at any other time — as if it were danger- 
ous to task the mind too often, lest her stores be ex- 
hausted, or her faculties become weakened. The 
bow may be but half bent, lest it be overstrained, and 
lose its power. But you need have no such fears. 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 37 

Continued efforts. Hamilton. President Porter. 

You may call upon your mind, to-day, for its highest 
efforts, and stretch it to the utmost in your power, and 
you have done yourself a kindness. The mind will 
be all the better for it. To-morrow you may do it 
again ; and each time it will answer more readily to 
your calls. 

But remember that real discipline of mind does not 
so much consist in now and then making a great effort, 
as in having the mind so trained that it will make 
constant efforts. Gutta cavat lapidem, non vi, sed 
s(Bpe ccBdendo, If you would have the discipline any 
thing like perfect, it must be unremitted ; the mind 
must be kept clear and shrewd. It is told of our 
gifted, but infatuated Hamilton, that, during the pe- 
riods in which the powers of his mind were put to 
the highest and severest exercise, he regularly read 
Euclid through once a month. The Federalist will 
tell the rest. 

The perfection of a disciphned mind is, not to be 
able, on some great contingency, to rouse up its facul- 
ties, and draw out a giant strength, but to have it 
always ready to produce a given and an equal quanti- 
ty of results in a given aad equal time. This was 
the glory of the mind of Isaac Newton ; and the late 
venerated Porter, of Andover, could, in any given 
hour, or day, or week, produce as finished and as 
ample results, as if he should wait for " some happy 
hours of thought." He who trains his mind to go by 



38 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

The two monks. 

impulses, and must wait for them, will accomplish but 
very little during his life. 

Two monks live near each other at the same time. 
They both profess to be students. Only one, howev- 
er, does anything towards disciplining his mind. , One 
uses language and lamentations as follows : — " They 
have invented a new language, which they call Greek ; 
you must be carefully on your guard against it ; it is 
the matter of all heresy. I observe in the hands of 
many persons a book written in that language, and 
which they call the New Testament. It is a book 
full of daggers and poison. As to the Hebrew, my 
dear brethren, it is certain that whoever learns it be- 
comes immediately a Jew." The other monk seizes 
the New Testament, and applies his habits of study 
and of diligence to it ; and with that Bible he shakes 
all "Europe ; he shakes the world, and, in a day, opens 
upon Christendom the light of thousands of years. 
Need I say, I mean Martin Luther? Nothing but his 
disciplined mind, and his habits of using that instru- 
ment, could have led him through the thick darkness 
which surrounded him, to the clear light in which we 
see liim. 

The study of human nature is a very important part 
of education. I know it is thought by some, nay, by 
many, that no one can understand men but those who 
are movinij;, and acting, and crowdins: amons; them. 
I grant that such a one is the only man who knows 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 39 

Knowledge of human nature necessary. Jonathan Edwards. 

the forms and modes of doing business. But if the 
student has not, at the close of his academical course, 
a deep and thorough insight into the nature of man, it 
is his own fault, or the fault of his instructers. Men 
in active life will judge very accurately as to the man- 
ner in which you may expect men to act in such and 
such circumstances ; but though, in these respects, 
their conclusions are accurate, yet they see not the 
motives of action, and look not so deeply into the 
soul, as the accurate student. Let a man in active 
life undertake to probe the conscience of an audience ; 
he may have this and that fact, but can he do it as 
effectually as he who has read human nature, and pon- 
dered over it, in all its recesses and v;Indino;s, in his 
study ? Few men ever hved who moved among men 
so little as Jonathan Edwards. But did he not under- 
stand human nature ? Can any one read his writings, 
and doubt, for a moment, that he knew most accurate- 
ly what the nature of man is ? When such a mind 
pours out its strength upon the world, it do^es not make 
mistakes as to the principles of action. He might 
mistake in purchasing a horse, or a coat, for he never 
attended to such small matters ; but a suri^feon never 
dissected the body with more accuracy and skill than 
he does the soul of man. It is a tradition that Ed- 
wards knew not his own cows ; but, in the world of 
active, driving, bargain-making men, you will never 
find one who understands human nature as well as he 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 



Who understands human nature best. Self-knowledg-e. 

did. And not he aloije ; but this is characteristic of 
all who are real students. They work upon the deep 
principles of human nature — those principles which 
are altered neither by time, nor fashion, nor outward 
circumstances. This is one reason why an educated 
mind will often send the arrow through the heart, while 
the uneducated man only twangs his bow. He makes 
more noise, but produces no execution. I doubt not 
that many will smile at the idea, that the hard student 
understands mankind ; but you might as well smile at 
the philosopher, who, while he was managing the 
electricity in the thunder-cloud, could not tell what 
outward shapes the cloud might, in the mean time, 
assume, or whether it moved fast or slow. 

Self-linowledge is another important end of study. 
There are some men who have raised themselves to 
high stations, and maintained them, without a long 
course of mental discipline. Roger Sherman thus rose 
from the bench of a shoemaker, till the eyes of a na- 
tion gazed on him in admiration. But most are ped- 
ants, and self-conceited, unless they have accurately 
and repeatedly measured themselves by others. It is 
of great importance that you know what you cannot 
do, as well as what you can do. For this reason, with 
all the temptations and dangers attending a public ed- 
ucation, I am satisfied it is much to be preferred to a 
private one. The wisest period in the whole of a 
man's existence, is when he has just entered college. 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 41 

Measure yourself. Vanity unacceptable. 

And why ? Simply because the youth has not yet 
had the opportunity of measuring his attainments and 
capacity with that of his fellows. It is not merely that 
you sharpen the intellect, and add a keenness to the 
mind, by contact with other minds, but you strengthen 
it by the contact, and you learn to be modest in regard 
to your own powers. You will see many with intel- 
lects of a high order, and with attainments far beyond 
any thing which you have dared call your own. 
There must be some radical defect in that man's na- 
ture, who can be associated^ in study, for years, with 
those who are severe students, and, at the end of the 
period, feel that he is a very wise or a very great 
man. He has then but just stepped upon the thresh- 
old of learning, and but just looked out upon that field 
of knowledge and improvement, which is as boundless 
as the creation of God. The mouse, which thought 
his chest was all the world, was astonished, when he 
stood upon the till, and looked out, to see what a great 
world lay beyond him. But what is the reason why 
a man must know himself exactly ? What if he does 
over-estimate himself? I answer — If he presents a 
draft greater than his deposits, it will certainly be pro- 
tested. There is so much vanity in the heart of every 
man, that he will not allow any one to claim more 
than his merits absolutely compel him to allow ; so 
that, if you place yourself on the list of those who 
over-estimate their own attainments or worth, you in- 



42 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL 

Modesty of a well-disciplined mind. Memory. 

jure your usefulness and destroy your happiness. The 
modest man may, and will, draw vastly harder upon 
the sympathy and good-will of mankind than the for- 
ward man, with the same attainments, will be allowed 
to do. Modesty, to rest upon any fixed, stable foun- 
dation, must rest upon an accurate knowledge of your- 
self. This will be the result of study. The philoso- 
pher whose fame was filling all Europe, was so modest 
and retiring, that his good landlady, one day, mourned 
over him, and lamented that "the poor soul could never 
make any thing more than a philosopher after all ! " 

We are in too great danger of neglecting the mem- 
ory. It is too valuable to be neglected, for by it, 
wonders are sometimes accomplished. He who has a 
memory that can seize with an iron grasp, and retain 
v/hat he reads, — the ideas, simply, without the lan- 
guage, — and judgment to compare and balance, will 
scarcely fail of being distinguished. Many are afraid 
of strengthening the memory, lest it should destroy 
their inducement and power to originate ideas — lest 
the light should be altogether borrowed light. The 
danger does not seem to me to be very great; 
especially since I have noticed, that those who are 
so fearful of employing this faculty are by no 
means to be envied for their originality. Why has 
that mass of thought, observation, and experience, 
w^iich is embodied in books, by the multitudes of 
minds which have gone before us, been gathered, if 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 43 

Oi-iginality not necessary. 

not, that we may use it, and stand on high ground, 
and push our way still farther into the boundaries and 
regions of knowledge ? Besides, in a world so dark 
as ours, it is delightful to see a planet rising before us, 
even though she sheds no light but borrowed. And, 
after all, the exact amount of original thought which 
passes through anyone mind, is probably much less than 
is frequently imagined. Who does not know what a 
delightful freshness there is in the reading of youth! 
The world is new to him. He treads on ground new 
and enchanting. 1 have frequently heard men, in 
maturer years, wish that they could now sit down and 
find the, same freshness in a book, which they did 
when young. Why do they not? Because a new 
book,- now, is not new. They have seen the same 
ideas, or the shades of them, many times before ; and 
every book takes away from the originality of that 
which is to follow it. The man who declared that 
the only two new books in the world were the Bible 
and Euclid, was not so far out of the way as would 
at first seem. If, then, there is not so much of origin- 
ality in men and in books as you at first suppose, it 
follows, that memory is the grand instrument of con- 
veying knowledge from one man to another. Its cul- 
tivation is of the highest importance. I mention it 
here, not now to direct how to cultivate it, but to 
state its immense value. 



44 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Object of studj' repeated. Power of memory. 

You will see, from what I have said, that the object 
of study is to discipline the mind in all its parts; to 
show it where to find tools, and how to use them. 
The exact amount of knowledge which is at any one 
time in the mind of the student, is not, and need not 
be, great. Like a good pump, you could soon ex- 
haust it, were it not that it reaches an inexhaustible 
well beneath, and has all the apparatus for filling itself 
as fast as emptied. If the knowledge which he now 
possesses shall evaporate, it will, like the vapors 
which rise from the ocean, again return to the dihgent 
student, by some other channels. It is thought by 
some, however, that no item of knowledge, and not a 
single idea which is once formed in the mind, can ever 
be lost. It may be forgotten to-day, but it will come 
acra'm to the notice of the mind in the course of the 
unending progress which is yet to be made by the 
human soul. How important that the knowledge 
w^hich we acquire, and the thoughts, which occupy our 
minds, be such, that, come when they may, we shall 
recognize them as pleasant companions and worthy 
friends ! The immortality of light which awaits the 
good, is to be one of thought, of review, and of self- 
communion ; and the night of ages which shall settle 
down upon the wicked, will not be other than sleep- 
less. 

It is not an uncommon thing for the youth to feel, 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 45 

Away from home. Tediousness of the student's life. 

as he is sent away from home, and confined down to 
books, that it is really a hard way to obtain an edu- 
cation. He thinks of the brooks, the groves, or the 
hills and ponds near his home, of his skates, his gun, 
or his fishing-tackle, or of the social circle around his 
father's fire-side, and sighs, that he must be exiled 
from all these, and shut up in his naked room^ among 
strangers, and there must unceasingly pore over his 
books. It is not to be wondered at, that he feels so; 
but let him reflect, that this is the time to form habits, 
and to begin a course of mental discipline, which, in a 
few years, will raise him high in the esteem, the re- 
spect, and the honors, of his fellow-men. Every dis- »•. 
tinguished man has trodden the same path. There is 
no other road to knowledge, to improvement, to dis- 
tinction. If the voice of experience could come to 
your ear, and if you could see the agony of heart 
which those feel, who once had your opportunities, but 
misimproved them, you would be astonished to see 
the real value of your situation. All who have passed 
through academic or collegiate life, know how very 
irksome that life is ; and the reason is, it is so hard 
for the mind to be broken in, and subdued by the dis- 
cipline of the situation : it is like taking the half- 
grown lion, and putting him in the iron cage, and then 
teaching him how to obey his master, and, of course, 
how to subdue himself. But this very discipline is 



46 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

— — ■ i 

Conclusion. 

the only thing which can bring the mind under proper 
subjection, and fit it to become obedient to yourself. j I 

I hope, in the chapters which are to follow, to mark 
out the road so plainly, that you will find it more and 
more pleasant to travel, and, at its end, feel that it has 
been a journey full of sweet recollections, and one of 
bright promise. 



CHAPTER II. 



HABITS. 



The whole character may be said to be compre- 
hended in the term habits ; so that it is not so far 
from being true, that " man is a bundle of habits." 
Suppose you were compelled to wear an iron collar 
about your neck through life, or a chain upon your 
ankle ; would it not be a burden every day and hour 
of your existence ? You rise in the morning a pris- 
oner to your chain ; you lie down at night, weary 
with the burden ; and you groan the more deeply, as 
you reflect that there is no shaking it off. But even 
this would be no more intolerable to bear than many 
of the habits of men ; nor would it be more difficult 
to be shaken off. 

Habits are easily formed — especially such as are 
bad ; and what to-day seems to be a small affair, will 
soon become fixed, and hold you with the strength 
of a cable. That same cable, you will recollect, is 
formed by spinning and twisting one thread at a time ; 
but, when once completed, the proudest ship turns her 
head towards it, and acknowledges her subjection to 
its power. 

Habits of some kind will be formed by every stu-v 



48 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 



Habits formed by all. It oug-ht to be so. 

dent. He will have a particular course in which his 
time, his employments, his thoughts and feelings, will 
run. Good or bad, these habits soon become a part 
of himself, and a kind of second nature. Who does 
not know, that the old man, who has occupied a par- 
ticular corner of the old fire-place in the old house for 
sixty years, may be rendered wretched by a change ? 
Who has not read of the release of the aged prisoner 
of the Bastile, who entreated that he might again 
return to his gloomy dungeon, because his habits 
there formed, were so strong, that his nature threaten- 
ed to sink under the attempt to break them up ? You 
will probably find no man of forty, who has not 
habits which he laments, which mar his usefulness, 
but which are so interwoveh with his very being, 
that he cannot break through them. At least he has 
not the courage to try. I am expecting you will form 
habits. Indeed, I wish you to do so. He must be 
a poor character, indeed, who lives so extempore as 
not to have habits of his own. But what I wish is, 
that you form those habits which are correct, and 
such as will every day and hour add to your happi- 
ness and usefulness. If a man were to be told that 
he must use the axe, which he now selects, through 
life, would he not be careful in selecting one of the 
right proportions and temper? If told that he must 
wear the same clothing through life, would he not be 
anxious as to the quality and kind ? But these, in the 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 49 

How, to form a habit. " Example. The prisoner, a second example. 

cases supposed, would be of no more Importance than 
is the selection of habits in which the soul shall act. 
You might as well place the body in a strait-jacket, 
and expect it to perform, with ease, and comfort, and 
promptness, the various diities of the body, as to 
throw the soul into the habits of some men, and then 
expect it will accomplish any thing great or good. 

Do not fear to undertake to form any habit which is 
desirable ; for it can be formed, and that with moVe ease 
than you may at first suppose. Let the same thing, or 
the same duty, return at the same time every day, and it 
will soon become pleasant. No matter if it be irksome 
at first ; but how irksome soever it may be, only let it 
return periodically, every day, and that without any 
'interruption for a time, and it will become a positive 
pleasure. In this way all our habits are formed. 
The student who can with ease now sit down, and 
hold his mind down to his studies nine or ten hours 
a day, would find the laborer, or the man accus- 
tomed to active habits, sinking under it, should he at- 
tempt to do the same thing. I have seen a man sit 
down at the table spread with luxury, and eat his 
sailor's biscuit with relish, and without a desire for 
any other food. His health had compelled him thus 
to live, till it had become a pleasant habit of diet. 
Previous to this, however, he had been rather noted 
for being an epicure. "I once attended a prisoner," 
sa s an excellent man, '' of some distinction, in one 
4 



50 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

First direction in regard to habits — have plans. 

of the prisons of the metropohs, ill of a typhus fever, 
whose apartments 'were gloomy in the extreme, and 
surrounded with horrors : yet this prisoner assured me 
afterwards, that, upon his release, he quhted them 
with a dejrree of reluctance : custoin had reconciled 

o 

hhn to the twiliu;ht admitted tlirous;!) the thick-barred 
grate, to tlie fihhy spots and patches of his plastered 
walls, to the hardness of his bed, and even to con- 
finement." 

I shall specify habits which, in my view, are very 
desirable to the student, and, at the same time,- en- 
deavor to give specific directions how to form them. 

1 . Have a plan laid beforehand for every day. 

These plans oui^ht to be maturely formed the 
evening previous, and, on rising in the morning, again 
looked at, and immediately entered upon. It is aston- 
ishing how much more we accomplish in a single 
day, (and what of else is life made up ?) by having 
the plan previously marked out. It is so in every- 
thing. This morning a man was digging a path 
through a deep snow-bank. It was almost insup- 
portably cold, and he seemed to make but little head- 
way, though he worked as if upon a wager. At 
length, getting out of breath, he paused, and marked 
out the width of the path with his shovel, then mark- 
ed out the width of each shovel-full, and consequently 
the amount of snow at each throw of the shovel. In 
fifteen minutes, he had done more, and it was done 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 51 

The snow path. How to calculate for a day. 

neater and easier, than in thirty minutes previous, 
when working without a plan. It is of little conse- 
quence by what we illustrate, if we make a' thing 
clear, and impress it upon the mind. I have found, in 
my own experience, as much difference in the labors 
of two days, when working with, or without a plan, 
as, at least, one half, without having the satisfaction, 
in the latter case, of knowing what 1 have done. 

Experience will tell any man, that he is most suc- 
cessful in his own pursuits, when he is most careful 
as to method. A man of my acquaintance has a 
small slate, which hangs at his study-table. On that 
he generally finds, in the morning, his work for the 
day written down ; and in the evening he reviewslit, 
sees if he has omitted any thing, and, if so, chides 
himself that all is not done. To make this clear, I 
copy here what was found on his slate for one day, as 
I saw it this morning: — 

a. Horse, errands, and dig paths. 

h. Carry my child to school, and pay postage- 
bill. 

c. Write from 9 till dinner [at 1 o'clock]. 

d. Write to C, inviting him — also to I. at N. H. 

e. Examine the use of the word c'p/i'Jsj^s in 
Ephesians 4. 26. 

/. Visit Mr. M. sick, also the tw^o families in 
Maple Street. 

g. Get some straw for horse wherever it can be 
purchased. 



52 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL.- 

Reviewing' the day. Character formed. A student's day. 

Ti. Prepare aDcl preach this evening. 

i. Examine the sixth vol. of B. [to see if any 
thing is there which I want]. 

j. Last, not least, to fix the pump [so that it will 
not freeze up]. 

If, at the close of the day, he finds these items all 
accomplished, and that in such a Vi^ay as to satisfy 
conscience, he feels that the day has not been' lost. 
Sometimes he finds he has misjudged, and has marked 
out more than he can do ; sometimes he is hindered 
by unexpected interruptions, and therefore cannot do 
all, or even half, he calculated to do. These must be 
all weighed every night at the review. Be sure and 
review every night, and when you have balanced the 
account with conscience, lay out what you will do for 
the next day. 

Such a system will raot rmke a noisy, blustering 
character. The river, that rolls a heavy burden of 
water to the ocean, is the stream which keeps the 
channel, and is noiseless in its course. There is a 
prescribed routine of duties marked out by your 
teachers. These, of course, will come in your every- 
day plans ; but, in addition to these, you ought to do 
something by way of acquiring or retaining informa- 
tion, or something to add to the happiness of your 
friends or of your companions. Let me suppose you 
mark out your plan for to-morrow, thus : — 

L Walk to the pond, l^- mile, immediately after 
breakfast. 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL.' 53 

A student's day. Second direction — untiring industnj. 

2. Lesson and recitation. 

3. Write to my mother, acknowledging her letter 
and bundle. 

4. Review, and see if I can read the 6th Eclogue 
of Virgil without looking into the Dictionary or 
Grammar. (Regular course of review.) 

5. Lesson and recitation. Walk till tea. 

6. See if . I can go through the 24th proposition 
of Euclid, 1st B., at once. (Regular review.) 

7. Visit Smith's room, and explain the remark 
which I made to-day, and at which he seemed hurt. 

8. Lesson for the morning, &;c. 

9. Note the three facts respecting Demosthenes 
in my common-place book. 

10. Talk over the question for dispute in the 
Society with my chum. 

11. Read the new magazine which mother has just 
sent me. 

At first you will feel discouraged in not being able 
to do as much work as you mark out. But you will 
do more and more, from day to day, as you proceed; 
and you will soon be astonished at seeing how much 
can be accomplished. If you choose, you can have 
a book instead of a slate, which will be also q^ kind 
of journal of your life, full of interesting memoranda. 

2. Acquire the habit of untiring industry. 

Should you be so unfortunate as to suppose you 
are a genius, and that " things will come to you," 



54 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Folio volumes. Indian maxim. Who is a blusterer. 

it would be well to undeceive yourself as soon as 
possible. Make up your mind that industry must be 
the price of all you obtain, and at once begin to pay 
down. " Dihgence in employments of less conse- 
quence is the most successful introduction to greater 
enterprises." It is a matter of unaffected amazement 
to see what industry alone will accomplish. We are 
astonished at the volumes which the men of former 
ages used to write. But the term industrij is the 
key to the whole secret. " He that^ shall walk with 
vigor three hours a day, will pass in seven years a 
space equal to the circumference of the globe." 
There is no state so bad for the student as idleness, 
and no habit so pernicious. And yet none is so easily 
acquired, or so difficult to be thrown off. The idle 
man soon grows torpid, and becomes the Indian in 
his feelings, insensibly adopting their maxim — "It is 
better to walk than to run, and better to stand still 
than to walk, and better to sit than to stand, and 
better to lie than to sit." Probably the man who 
deserves the most of pity, is he who is most idle; for 
as " there are said to be pleasures to madness known 
only to madmen, there are certainly miseries in 
idleness which only the idle can conceive." I am 
aware that ,many are exceedingly busy, who are not 
industrious. For it very frequently happens, that he 
who is most hurried and bustling, is very far from being 
industrious. A shrewd man can easily discover the 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 55 

Who has leisure. Seneca. 

difference. " He that neglects his known duty, and 
real employment, naturally endeavors to crowd his 
mind with somethins^ that may bar out the remem- 
brance of his own f:)lly, and does any thing but what 
he ought to do, with eager dihgence, that he may 
keep himself in his own favor." 

It is perfectly clear that he who is industrious has 
really the most of leisure ; for his time is marked out 
into distinct portions, to each of which something is 
assigned ; and when the thing is done, the man is at 
leisure ; but a dead calm settles over him who lives an 
idle life. Better that the waters be straitened, and 
burst over their banks, than that they be too sluggish to 
move at all. Who would not prefer to put to sea, even 
in a storm, and in a gale hurry over the waters, rather 
than lie for weeks becalmed ? It is said that when 
Scanderbeg, prince of Epirus, was dead, the Turks 
wished to get his bones, that each one might wear a 
piece near his heart, and thus obtain some part of 
that courau-e which he had while livino-, and which 
they had too often experienced in battle. What a 
blessing, if the idle might obtain some such charm, 
that would rouse them up to habits of industry ! 
Seneca assures his friend, in a letter, that there " was 
not a day in which he did not eitlier write something, 
or read and epitomize some good author." So uni- 
versal has the opinion of men been on the point, that, 
in order to excel, you must be industrious, that idlers 



56 THE STUDENTS VIaNUAL. 

Rutherford. Luther. Jeremiah Evarts. 

have received the 'just appellation of "fools at large." 
You would be surprised to know how many hours 
slip away from the man who is not systematically in- 
dustrious. " Such was his unwearied assiduity and 
diligence, that he seemed to pray constantly, to 
preach constantly, to catechize constantly, and to visit 
the sick, exhorting from house to house, to teach as 
much in the schools, and spend as much time with 
the students and young men, in fitting them for the 
ministry, as if he had been sequestrate from all the 
world besides, and yet, withal, to write as much as if 
he had been constantly shut up in his study."* 

It is easy for the student to form good plans of 
study and of daily habits, and to draw them out on 
paper, all perfected. But the difficulty is, they are 
found no where but on paper ; and because you cannot 
at once reach them, you sit down and give up an un- 
tiring industry. It was a matter of astonishment to 
Europe, that Luther, amid all his travels and active 
labors, could present a very perfect translation of the 
whole Bible. But a single word explains it all. He 
had a rigid system of doing something every day. 
" Nulla dies,'' says he, in answer to the question how 
he did it — '^ nulla dies sine versu;"" and this soon 
brought him to the close of the whole Bible. 

I have never known a man whose habits of every- 
day industry were so good as those of Jeremiah Ev- 

* Life of Rutherford. 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 5t 

Idleness "certain death. 

arts. During years of close observation in the bosom 
of his family, 1 never saw a day pass without his ac- 
complishing more than he expected ; and so regular 
was he in all his habits, that I knew to a moment 
when I should find him with his pen, and when with 
his tooth-brush, in bis hand : and so methodical and 
thorough, that though his papers filled many shelves, 
when closely tied up, there v/as not a paper among 
all his letters, correspondence, editorial matter, and the 
like, which was not labelled and in its place, and upon 
which he could not lay his hSnd in a moment. 1 
never knew him search for a paper; — it was always 
in its place. I have never yet met with the man 
whose industry was so great, or who would accom- 
plish so much in a given time. 

'' Pray, of what did your brother die? " said the 
Marquis Spinola to Sir Horace Vere. " He died, sir," 
replied he, "of having nothing to do." "Alas, sir," 
said Spinola, " that is enough to kill any general of 
us all." 

Demosthenes, as is well known, copied Thucyd- 
ides' History eight times with his own hand, merely 
to make himself familiar with the style of that great 
man. 

There are two proverbs, one among the Turks, and 
the other among the Spaniards, both of wdiich con 
tain much that is true. " A busy man is troubled 
with but one devil, but th§ idle man with a thou 



58 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Third direction — perspverance. 

sand." " Men are usually tempted by the devil,, but 
the idle man positively tempts the devil." How 
much corrupting company, how many temptations to 
do wrong, how many seasons of danger to your char- 
acter, and danger to the peace of your friends, would 
you escape, by forming the habit of being decidedly 
industrious every day ! 

3. Cultivate perseveran^ce. 

By perseverance, I mean a steadfastness in pursu- 
ing the same study, and carrying out the same plans 
from w^eek to week. * Some will read or hear of a 
plan which somebody has pursued with great success, 
and at once conclude, that they will do so. The plan 
will be adopted without consideration, then talked 
about as a fine affair, and in a kw days thrown aside 
for something else. Such a great man did this, or did 
that, and Twill do so, is the feeling ; but as soon as it 
becomes irksome, as any new habit w^ill in a short 
time, it is laid aside. I once knew a man, a student, 
who somewhere read of a great man who wrote 
over his door, " Dum loquimur tempus fugit ; " and 
immediately he had it in staring capitals over his door. 
Again, he read that a very learned man used f:, 
admire Blackstone : at once he drops all, and piM 
chases Blackstone's Commentaries. These he began 
to read with great eagerness ; but, happening to hear 
that Oliver Ellsworth was in the habit of getting most 
of his information from con venation, (a fact which I 



THE STUDENT^S MANUAL. 



Decision an attendant on perseverance. \ ustrated. 



doubt,) he was for dropping Blacksfnne, and going 
fmm room to room, to gather information by conver- 
sation ! It is liardly necessary to say, that a college 
full cf such students, all condensed into one, would 
not make a sin2;le real student. " The man who is 
perpetually hesitating which of two things he will do 
first, will do neither. The man who resolves, but 
suffers his resolution to be changed by the first coun- 
ter suggestion of a friend, — who fluctuates from opinion 
to opinion, from plan to plan, and veers like a weath- 
er-cock to every point of the compass, with every 
breath of caprice that blows, — can never accomplish 
any thing great or useful. Instead of being pro- 
gressive in any thing, he will be at best stationary, 
and more probably retrograde in all. It is only the 
man who carries into his pursuits that great quality 
which Lucan ascribes to Csesar, — nescia virtus stare 
loco, — who first consults wisely, then resolves firmly, 
and then executes his purpose with inflexible perse- 
verance, undismayed by those petty difficulties which 
daunt a weaker spirit, — that can advance to eminence 
in any line. Let us take, by way of illustration, the 
case of a student. He commences the stud^ of the 
dead languages: preseiitly comes a friend, who teils 
him he is wasting his time, and that, instead of obso- 
lete words, he liad much better employ h'mselT in 
acquiring new ideas. He clianges his plan, and sets 
to work at the mathematics. Then comes another 



THE STUDENT'S MANUA-L. 



Effect of changing- plans. Habit of putting off. 

friend, who asks him, with a grave and sapient face, 
whether he intends to become a professor in a col- 
lege;, because, if he does not, he is misemploying 
his time ; and that, for the business of life, common 
mathematics is quite enough of the mathematics. 
He throws up his Euchd, and addresses himself to 
some other study, which, in its turn, is again relin- 
quished on some equally w^ise suggestion ; and thus 
life is spent in changing his plans. You cannot but 
perceive the folly of this course ; and the worst effect 
of it is, the fixing on your mind a habit of indecision, 
sufficient of itself to blast the fairest prospects. No, 
take your course wisely, but firmly ; and, having taken 
* it, hold upon it with heroic resolution, and the Alps 
and Pyrenees will sink before you. The whole em- 
pire of learning will be at your feet, while those who 
set out with you, but stopped to change their plans, 
are yet employed in the very profitable business of 
changing their plans. Let your motto be. Perse- 
verando vinces. Practise upon it, and you will be 
convinced of its value by the distinguished eminence 
to which it will conduct you."* 

We are in danger of ruining our promising plans, 
in themselves very good, by the habit of putting off 
till to-morrow what may be done to-day. That let- 
ter may be answered to-morrow ; that request of my 

* Wirt. 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 61 

Charles XII. 

friend may be attended to to-morrow, and he will be 
no loser. True ; but you are the loser ; for the 
yielding to one such temptation, is the signal to the 
yielding up the whole citadel to the enemy. That 
note and that valuable fact may be recorded in my 
common-place book to-morrow. True ; but every 
such indulgence is a heavy loss to you. Every hour 
should be perseveringly filled up. But this is not 
all. It is not sufficient to take for your motto, with 
the immortal Grotius, '' Hora ruit;^^ but let it be 
filled up according to some plan. One day filled up 
according to a previous plan, is worth more than a 
week, filled up, but without any plan. 

It is astonishing to see with what perseverance and 
inflexibility of purpose those men have pursued the 
object, the pursuit and attainment of which consti- 
tuted their greatness. Charles XII. was frequently 
on his horse for twenty-four hours at once; and thus 
he traversed most of his dominions. His officers were 
all tired out ; consequently, for the most part, be per- 
formed these journeys entirely alone. On one of 
these excursions, his poor horse fell dead under him. 
Without any uneasiness, the monarch stripped the 
dead horse, and marched off with the saddle, bridle 
and pistols on his back. At the next inn, he found a 
horse in the stable to his mind, and immediately har- 
nessed him, and was just making off, when the owner 
came out, and called him to account for stealing his 



62 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

■ ♦ — 

Fourth direction — jmncUiality . Difficult attainment. Brougham. 

property. The monarch rephed, that he took the 
horse because he was tired of carrying the saddle 
himself. This not satisfying the owner, they drew 
swords, and would have shed blood, royal or plebeian, 
had not the guard rode up and informed the owner 
that his sword was raised against his king. This was 
but a single specimen of the untiring perseverance, 
with which that ambitious man carried out his plans. 
The same perseverance would place almost any stu- 
dent on a high eminence in a very few years. 

4. Cultivate the habit of punctuality. 

There is no man living who might not be a punc- 
tual man ; and yet there are few that are so, to any 
thing like the degree to which they ought to attain. It 
is vastly easier to be a little late in getting into the reci- 
tation-room, and a little late in doing every thing. It is 
not so easy to be a prompt, punctual character; but it is 
a tiait of inestiinable value to yourself and to the world. 
The punctual man can do twice as much, at least, as 
another man, with twice the ease and satisfaction to 
himself, and with equal satisfaction to others. The 
late lord chancellor of England, Henry Brougham^ 
while a kingdom seemed to be resting; on his shoul- 
ders ; who presided in the house of lords and the court 
of chancery ; who gave audience daily to barristers, 
found time to write reviews, to be at the head of at 
least ten associations which were publishing works of 
useful knowledge, — was so punctual, that, when these 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 63 

Why we love a punctual man. Blackstone. Brewer, while a student. 

associations met, he was uniformly there when the 
hour of meeting had arrived, and was in his place in 
the chair. 

We are all so indolent, by nature and by habit, 
that we feel it a luxury to find a man of real, undevi- 
ating punctuality. We love to lean upon such a man, 
and we are willing to purchase such a staff at almost 
any price. It shows, at least, that he has conquer- 
ed himself. 

Some seem to be afraid of cherishing this habit, lest 
it border upon a virtue that is vulgar, and is below the 
ambition of a great mind, or the attention of one who 
has greater virtues upon which he may presume. 
Was the mind of Blackstone of a low order ? Did he 
cultivate punctuality because he had not great traits 
of character on which to rely ? Yet, when he was 
delivering even his celebrated lectures, he was never 
known to make his audience wait even a minute ; and 
he could never be made to think well of anv one who 
was notoriously defective in this virtue. The reader 
will be pleased with the following notice of Mr. 
Brewer, afterwards a valuable minister of the gospel. 
While a student, he was always known to be punctual 
in attending the lectures at the tutor's house. The 
students boarded in neighboring families, and at stated 
hours met for recitation. One mornino;, the clock 
struck seven, and all rose up for prayer, according to 
custom. The tutor, looking round, and observing that 



64 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Loss by the want of this habit. 

Mr. Brewer was absent, paused awhile. Seeing him 
now enter the room, he thus addressed him : — " Sir, 
the clock has struck, and we were ready to begin ; but, 
as you were absent, we supposed it was too fast, and 
therefore waited." The clock was actually too fast 
by some minutes. 

It is no great virtue to be punctual in paying a con- 
siderable debt, though, even here, too many fail ; but 
it is the every-day and every-hour occurrences, in 
which we are most apt to fail. " I am too late now, 
but it is only once. 1 have not been prompt in ful- 
filling my plans to-day ; but it is only onceJ^ Such is 
the language of procrastination. I have myself ridden 
scores of miles, and been put to inconvenient expense, 
and a hard week's w^ork in writing, by the want of 
punctuality in one who failed only five minutes, and 
that wholly unnecessarily. Be punctual in every 
thing. If you determhie to rise at such an hour, be 
on the floor at the moment. If you determine to do 
so much before breakfast, be sure to do it ; if to 
meet a society, or a circle of friends, be there at the 
moment. We are apt to be tardy in attending meet- 
ings of societies, &c., especially if we have any thing 
to do. '^ There is great dignity in being waited for," 
said one who w^as in this habit, and who had not much 
of which he need be vain, unless it was this want of 
promptness. An assembly will be glad to see you 
after having waited for you ; but they would have 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 65 

Mistakes made. Fifth direction— ejtr/j/ rising. Swift's remark. 

been more glad to see you at your post. When there 
are two things for you to do, one of which must be 
done, and the other is w^hat you very nnuch desire to 
do, be sure and begin the former first. For example, 
you may very much wish to complete the sheet 
which you are now writing, and for many reasons you 
may wish it ; but you must recite this evening. Now, 
the way for you to do, is, now to stop writing, and 
prepare for recitation, else you will write so long, that 
not only your preparation in study will be slighted, 
but you will also be in danger of not being punctual. 
The want of the observance of this rule, very fre- 
quently prevents our being punctual in our duties. 

5. Be an early riser. 

Few ever lived to a great age, and fewer still ever 
became distinguished, who were not in the habit of 
early rising. You rise late, and of course get about your 
business at a late hour, and every thing goes wrong all 
day. Franklin says, " that he who rises late, may 
trot all day, and not have overtaken his business at 
night." Dean Swift avers, " that he never knew any 
man come to jireatness and eminence who lay in bed 
of a morning." 

I believe that, with. other depferieracies of our days, 
history will prove that late rising is a prominent one. 
In the fourteenth century, the shops in Paris were 
universally open at four in the morning ; now, not till 
long after seven. Then, the king of France dined out 
5 



66 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Former times. Curious instance in Buffon. 

at eight o'clock in the morning, and retired to his 
chamber at the same hour in the evenino^. In the 
time of Henry VIII., seven in the morning was the 
fashionable breakfast hour — ten the dinner hour. In 
the time of Elizabeth, the nobility, fashionables, and 
students, dined at 11 o'clock, and supped between five 
and six in the afternoon. 

Buffon gives us the history of his writing in a few 
words. " In my youth, I was very fond of sleep : it 
robbed me of a great deal of my time ; but my poor 
Joseph (his servant) was of great service in enabling me 
to overcome it. I promised to give Joseph a crown 
every time that he would make me get up at six. 
Next morning, he did not fail to wake me and to tor- 
ment me ; but he only received abuse. The next day 
after, he did the same, with no better success ; and I 
was obhged to confess, at noon, that I had lost my 
time. I told him that he did not know hov/ to man- 
age his business ; he ought to think of my promise, 
and not mind my threats. The day following, he 
employed force ; I begged for indulgence — I bid him 
begone — I stormed — but Joseph persisted. I was 
therefore obliged to comply ; and he was rewarded 
every day for the abuse which he suffered at the mo- 
ment when I awoke, by thanks, accompanied with a 
crown, which he received about an hour after. Yes, 
1 am indebted to poor Joseph for ten or a dozen of 
the volumes of my works " 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 67 

Frederick II. Doddridge. Early rest necessar3\ 

Frederick II. of Prussia, even after age and infirmi- 
ties had increased upon him, gave strict orders never 
to be allow^ed to sleep later than four in the morning. 
Peter the Great, whether at work in the docks at 
London as a ship-carpenter, or at the anvil as a black- 
smith, or on the* throne of Russia, always rose before 
daylight. " I am," says he, " for making my life as 
long as I can, and therefore sleep as little as possible." 
Doddridge makes the following striking and sensible 
remarks on this subject : — " I will here record the ob- 
servation, which I have found of great use to myself, 
and to which, I may say, that the production of this 
work (Commentary on the New Testament), and 
most of my other writings, is owing, viz. that the dif- 
ference between rising at five and at seven o'clock in 
the morning, for the space of forty years, supposing 
a man to go to bed at tlie same hour at night, is near- 
ly equivalent to the addition of ten years to a man's 
life." 

In order to rise early, I would earnestly recommend 
an early hour for retiring. There are many other 
reasons for this. Neitiier your eyes nor your health 
are so likely to be destroyed. Nature seems to have 
so fitted things, that we ought to rest in the early part 
of the night. Dr. Dwight used to tell his students 
"that one hour of sleep before midnight is worth 
more than two hours after that time." Let it be a 
lule with you, and scrupulously adhered to, that your 



68 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

How to form the habit. The clock. 

light shall be extinguished by ten o'clock in the even- 
ing. You may then rise at fiv^e, and have seven 
hours to rest, which is about what nature requires. 

But how shall you form the habit of getting up so 
early ? Suppose you go to bed, to-night, at ten : you 
have been accustomed to sit up later: for an hour you 
cannot sleep ; and when the clock strikes five, you 
will be in a fine sleep. I reply, that, if you ever hope 
to do any thing in this world, the habit mmt be form- 
ed, and the sooner it is done the better. If any 
money could purchase the habit, no price would be 
too great. When the writer commenced the prac- 
tice in earnest, he procured an old clock, at the ex- 
pense of about two dollars. (This may be placed 
wherever you please.) He then formed a little ma- 
chine which went by a weight and string, through the 
axle of which were four arms of wire, at the ends of 
which were as many brass buttons. As the weight 
went down, these revolving buttons struck against a 
small house-bell. This set up such a tremendous 
ringing, that there was no more sleep. All this was 
connected with the wooden clock, in the distant room, 
by means of wires. He has had the honor to instruct 
others of his profession into the mystery, and has had 
the pleasure of hearing the dingling of other bells, 
which other wooden clocks set a ringing. Some use 
a small alarm-clock to call them up, and to which they 
soon acquire a strong attachment, which would be 



V I 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 69 

Yale and Amherst Colleges. Many object to forming the habit. 

Stronger still, could it be made to strike up a light and 
build a fire. By this, or some such process, you must 
be regularly waked at an early hour. The students 
in Yale and Amherst Colleges, have generally the 
alarm-clock. After you are once awaked, be sure to 
use the first consciousness in getting upon the floor. 
If you allow yourself to parley a single moment, sleep, 
like an armed man, will probably seize upon you, and 
your resolution is gone, your hopes are dashed, and 
your habits destroyed. Need you be reminded here, 
that the young man who is in the habit o( early rising, 
will and must be in the habit of retiring early, and, of 
course, will put himself out of the way of many temp- 
tations and dany-ers which come under the veil of 
midnight. Not a few feel that the rules of acade- 
mies, or colleges, which call them up early, are rather 
a hardship. They transgress them when they dare. 
Finding the stolen waters sweet, they do all in their 
power during vacations, and at other limes, to prevent 
themselves from forming the habit of early rising. 
They ought not to feel or do so. The bi-isiness of col- 
lege, and the business of life, alike require early rising ; 
and you are your own enemy if you cherish the feel- 
ing that tins is a burden. It ought to be a matter of 
gratitude that such regulations prevail in our semi- 
naries. One of the most celebrated \a riiers cf Eng- 
land was lately asked how it was that he wrote so 
much, and yet from ten in the forenoon was at leisure 



70 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Besetting sin. Sixth direction — learn fiani every thing. 

through the day. " Because I begin to write at three 
o'clock in the morning," was the reply. Most confi- 
dently do I believe, that he who from his youth is in 
the habit of rising early, will be much more likely to 
live to old age, more likely to be a distinguished and 
useful man, and more likely to pass a life that is 
peaceful and pleasant. 1 dwell upon this point, be- 
cause a love for the bed is too frequently a besetting 
sin of students, and a sin which soon acquires the 
strength of a cable. 

6. Be hi the habit of learning something from 
every man with whom you meet. 

The observance or neglect of this rule w^ill make a 
wonderful difference in your character long before the 
time that you are forty years old. All act upon it, 
more or less, but few do it as a matter of habit and 
calculation. Most act upon it as a matter of interest, 
or of curiosity at the moment. The great difficulty 
is, we begin too late in life to make every thing con- 
tribute to increase our stock of practical information. 
Sir Walter Scott gives us to understand, that he never 
met with any man, let his calling be what it might, 
even the most stupid fellow that ever rubbed down a 
horse, from whom he could not, by a few moments' 
conversation, learn something which he did not before 
know, and which was valuable to him. This will ac- 
count for the fact that he seemed to have an intuitive 
knowledge of every thing. Who but he would stop 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 71 

Value of this habit. Wisdom in a servaiil-g^rl, 

in the street and note down a word which dropped 
among the oaths of two angry men, — a word for which 
he had been looking for months ? It is quite as im- 
portant to go through the world with the ears open, 
as with the eyes open. '' When I was young," says 
Cecil, "my mother had a servant, whose conduct I 
thought truly wise. A man was hired to brew, and 
this servant was to watch his method, in order to learn 
his art. In the course of the process, something was 
done which she did not understand. She asked him, 
and he abused her with the vilest epithets for her ig- 
norance and stupidity. My mother asked her how 
she bora such abuse. ' I would be called,' said she? 
* worse names, a thousand times, for the sake of the 
information 1 got out of him.'" It is a false notion, 
that we ought to know nothing out of our particular 
line of study or profession. You will be none the less 
distinguished in your calling, for having obtained an 
item of practical knowledge from every man with 
whom you meet. And every man, in his particular 
caUing, knows things which you do not, and which 
are decidedly worth knowing. 

Multitudes of gifted and learned men sat under 
the ministry of the eloquent and youthful Spencer. 
They were liis superiors in every thing excepting 
his own profession, and perhaps in that, excepting 
the point on whicli he had just been studying, 
and on which he was speaking. Yet they all felt 



72 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Wirt's review of this subject. The principle illustrated. 

that they were deriving information, profit, and pleas- 
ure, from his ministry. " Old-fashioned economists 
will tell you never to pass an old nail, or an old horse- 
shoe, or buckle, or even a pin, without taking it up ; 
because, although you may not want it now, you will 
find a use for it some time or other. 1 say the same ' 
thing to you with regard to knowledge. However 
useless it may appear to you at the moment, seize 
upon all that is fairly within your reach. For there - 
is not a fact, within the whole circle of human obser- 
vation, nor even a fugitive anecdote that you read in 
a newspaper, or hear in conversation, that will not 
come into play some time or other ; and occasions will 
arise when they involuntarily present their dim shad- 
ows in the train of your thinking and reasoning, 
as belonging to that train, and you will regret that you 
cannot recall them more distinctly." 

I do not recommend you to try to learn every thing. 
Far from it. But while you have one great object in 
view, you can attend to other things which have a 
bearing on your object. If you were now sent on 
an express to Mexico, while the great object be- 
fore you would be, to do your errand well, and 
expeditiously, ought you not, as you pass along, 
to use your eyes, and gaze upon the landscapes, 
the rivers, the deep glens, the waterfalls, the wild 
solitudes of nature, which lie in your path 1 Ought 
you not to have your ears open, to pick up what in- 



• THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 73 

Seventh direction— ^//.rcci! prinryihs. What makes a firm cliaracter. 

formation, story, anecdote, fact, every thing of the 
liind, which you can, and thus return wiser ? Would 
all this hinder you in the least ? And would you not 
be fitting yourself, by every such acquisition, to be a 
more ao-reeable, intellii^ent and useful man ? '^ Sic, sic 
se habere rew necesse prorsus est.^' 

7. Form fixed principles on which you ihinlc 
and act. 

A good scholar tries so to fix every word in his 
memory, that, when he meets with it again, he need 
not turn to his dictionary. His companion may dis- 
pute its derivation, or its gender, and he may not be 
able to tell just how the word appeared when lie look- 
ed it out ; but he has made up his mind about it, and 
has a fixed opinion. He may not now be able to tell 
you by vi^hat process he came to that opinion. It should 
be so with every thing. Do not examine a subject, 
in order to get some general notion of it, but, if now 
in haste, wait till you can do it thoroughly. No mat- 
ter what it be, — of great importance or small, — if it be 
worth examining at all, do it thoroughly, and do it 
once for all ; so that, whenever the subject shall again 
come up, your mind will be settled and at rest. 
It is the possession of established and unwavering 
principles that. makes a nian a firm character. These 
principles relate to right and wrong, and, indeed, to 
every thing about which the judgment has to balance 
probabilities. Do not be hasty in coming to conclu- 



74 THE STUDENTS MANUAL. 

The tried shelf. Characters and books to be classified. 

sions. Young men generally err more by being pre- 
cipitate, than for want of judgment. If they will only 
give themselves time to weigh the matter, their conclu- 
sions will usually be correct. 

" I have long adopted an expedient, which I have 
found of singular service. I have a shelf in my study 
for tried authors, and one in my mind for tried princi-. 
'ples and characters. 

" When an author has stood a thorough examination, 
and will bear to be taken as a guide, I put him on the 
shelf! 

" When I have more fully made up my mind on a 
principle, I put it on the shelf! A hundred subtle 
objections may be brought against this principle ; I 
may meet with some of them, perhaps ; but ray prin 
ciple is on the shelf. Generally I may be able to re- 
call the reasons which vi^eighed with me to put it there ; 
but, if not, I am not to be sent out to sea again. 
Time was when I saw throu2;h and detected all the 
subtleties that could be brouo-ht against it. I have 
past evidence of having been fully convinced; and 
there on the shelf it shall be ! 

" When I have turned a character over and over on 
all sides, and seen it throuirh and throuo-h in all situ- 
ations, I put it on the shelf. There may be conduct 
in the person, which may stumble others ; there 
may be great inconsistencies ; there may be strange 
and unaccountable turns ; but I have put that character 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 7S 

The martyr Latimer. 

on the shelf; difficulties will all be cleared; everything 
will come round again. 1 should be much chagrined, 
indeed, to be obli!j:ed to take a character down which 
I had once put up, but that has never been the case 
with me yet ; and the best guard against it is, not to 
be too hasty in putting them, there." Those who un- 
derstand the above keen remarks by experience, well 
know what a luxury it is, on particular occasions, when 
the mind is fatigued, or the memory is weak, and 
doubts are started concerning- some point of great im- 
portance, to have this " shelf" of established princi- 
ples to which you can go. 1 have never been able to 
read the history of the martyrdom of the venerable 
Latimer, without being touched, almost to tears, to see 
him clinging to his long-established principles. They 
urged hira to dispute and prove Afs* religion true, and 
the popish, false.- He knew that he was old, and had 
lost somewhat of the strength of his mind. He would 
not dispute. He left that for young and vigorous 
minds, while he died simply repeating his belief! 
He knew very well that he had once examined the sub- 
ject with all the vigor of his intellect, and he was not 
to go and take these principles down from the " shelf," 
and again prove them, to be correct. Conduct which 
stands on such a basis, and character which strikes its 
roots thus deep, will be such as will bear scrutiny, and 
such as no storm can shake. 



76 THE STUDENTS MANUAL. 

Eighth direction — personal habits. Tobacco. 

" The man resolved, and steady to his trust, 

Inflexible to ill, and obstinately just. 

May the rude rabble's insolence despise, 
. Their senseless clamors and tumultuous cries ; 

The tyrant's fierceness he beguiles, 

And the stern brow and the harsh voice defies, 

And with superior greatness smiles." 

8. Be simple and neat in your personal habits. 

It is frequently said, that " some pride is necessary 
among rnen, else they would not be decent in their ap- 
pearance." If the remark means any thing, I suppose 
it means, that pride adds much and frequently to our 
personal appearance. But an angel, or any sinless 
spirit, 1 doubt not, would be a gefltlemanin appearance 
and dress, and that not from pride, but from a desire 
to be more useful and more happy. Nothing will so 
uniformly and certainly make you unpopular, as to 
have any habits that are slovenly. 

If you have ever learned to chew or smoke that 
Indian weed, called tobacco, I beg that you will at 
once drop all, cleanse your mouth, and never again 
defile yourself with it. Nicholas Monardus, a German, 
has written a large folio on the virtues of tobacco; but 
it would take many such folios to prove it worthy of 
a place among civilized men. Let a man be thrown 
from a ship-wreck upon a desert island, and in a 
state of starvation, and he would rather die than to 
eat this weed, though the island might be covered 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 77 



'I'lic royal " Couuterblast." FilCccts of tlie system. 



with it ; and no youth can use it, either in chewing or 
smoking, without decided and permanent injury to his 
appearance, health, and progress in study. ^ Let a 
company spend the evening in smoking the cigar, and 
what is the effect ? They all awake, in the morning, 
restless, feverish, low-spirited, and dissatisfied. The 
bell grates upon the nerves worse than ever. The 
mouth is clammy and bitter, the stomach uneasy, and 
each one feels like pouring out the vital principle in 
yawning. The custom certainly seems most at home 
in a filthy ale-house or bar-room. When the fashion 
was so strong in England, that James I. could get 
no one to preach against it, his own royal hand took 
the pen and wrote a treatise which he denominates 
"-4 Counterblast to Tobacco.'''' The strength of his 
princely antidote may be gathered from the following 
closing paragraph of this royal Counterblast. " It is 
a custom loathsome to the eye, hateful to the nose, 
harmful to the brain, dangerous to the lungs, and in 

the black fume thereof, nearest resembling the 

horrible Stygeian smoke of the pit that is bottomless." 
' All experienced people will tell you that the habit 
of using tobacco, in any shape, will soon render you 
emaciated and consumptive, your nerves shattered, 
your spirits low and moody, your throat dry, and de- 
manding stimulating drinks, your person filthy, and 
your habits those of a swine. 

Let your dress be neat and simple. Do not feel 



78 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Dress. Change of g-arments. 

that the body, which is merely a case for the soul, is of 
too great importance. At the same time, he who is a 
" good and true man," will be likely to keep the out- 
side of his house in good order. In a certain village 
there is a house, which seems designed to be foppish. 
Its front is white, its left green, its back yellow, and 
its rio-ht red. Nothing could be more ridiculous, "and 
yet it is not more ridiculous, in reality, than the dress 
of many a house that the soul must inhabit. 1 would 
recommend that your clothes be of good quality, — so 
good, that you constantly feel that they are worth 
preserving, — and that you feel anxious to show your 
economy, by the length of time they last. For exer- 
cise, you should have a different dress. No one can 
enjoy himself who undertakes to study and exercise 
in the same dress. In your study, use an old coat or 
gown. You will feel more easy and comfortable, and 
your dress-coat will last all the better for it. Some 
wear a baize jacket in study ; and this is very well. I 
know of one who always studies, summer and winter, 
in his shirt sleeves ; and though I have an opinion of 
him quite as high as he deserves, yet I cannot recom- 
mend the practice. 

Your dress should be warm. If you wear flannels 
next the skin, be sure to take them all off when you 
sleep. Be sure, also, to keep your feet dry and warm. 
In order to this, you must use them every day in walk- 
ing. The question in relation to dress should be, not 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 70 

Economy in dress. Dandyism. Alexander's courtiers. 

" How often can I bav§ a new hat or coat ? " but " How 
Igng can I wear it, and keep it handsome?" He who 
undertakes to be very nice and finical in his dress, 
will make but a poor student. He descends towards 
the animal world. Dryden, in his fable of the Cock 
and tbe Fox, seems to have had a dandy before him — 

" Then, turning, said to Partlet, ' See, my dear. 
How lavish Nature hath adorned the year ; 
How the pale primrose and the violets spring-, 
And birds assay their throats, disused, to sing.: 
All these are ours ; and I, with pleasure, see 
Man strutting on two legs, and aping me ! ' '' 

No slave is so abject, as he who tries to keep near 
the head in the race of fashions. Alexander is said 
to have had a neck that was wry ; and this created a 
fashion, so that his courtiers all held their heads on 
one side. He was most fashionable, who lopped his 
head the most. Was this more ridiculous than what 
the votaries of fashion must do continually ? But 
cannot a student be particularly nice about his dress 
without having his heart all in it ? I reply, " that 
whenever you see the tail of a fox out of the hole, 
you may be pretty sure that the fox is in the hole." 
Keep your clothes neat and clean ; your coat, your 
hat, your boots or shoes, and be neat as to your 
linen ; but do not feel that this is by any means the 
great business of life. 

Pay particular attention to your teeth. By this I 



80 , THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

The teeth. How preserved. Sing-ularity. 

mean, simply, cleanse them with a soft brush and 
with water, in which a little common salt is dissolved, 
the last thing before you retire at night. This simple 
direction, faithfully followed, will ordinarily keep the 
teeth good till old age. I would urge this, because, if 
neglected, the following are the results: — Your breath 
will inevitably become offensive from defective teeth ; 
your comfort will be destroyed by frequent tooth-ache ; 
your health will suffer for the want of good teeth to 
masticate the food ; and last, though not least, you 
will early lose your teeth, and thus your public 
speaking will be irretrievably injured. These may 
seem small affairs now, but the habit of neglect will 
assuredly bring bitter repentance when it is too late 
to remedy the neglect. 

Do not affect, singularity in any of your habits. 
We never feel at home with a man of odd habits ; 
and any such will assuredly increase upon him. He 
makes a heavy draft upon the kindness of mankind, 
who is every day demanding that they bear with his 
eccentricities. You may now recollect a most excel- 
lent man, who is often seen in company, with his feet 
poised upon the top of a chair, and nearly as high as 
his head, and not unfrequently upon a table. The 
habit was acquired when a student ; and though a 
whole company has often ached over the habit, yet it 
remains unaltered. You may be boorish in manners, 
and be like i Johnson in that respect; but he had 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 81 

Maimers at table. What society demands as to manners. 

talents and industry, which could make him distin- 
guished in spite of his ill manners. 

Be particularly attentive to your behavior at table ; 
for, from his situation, the student is peculiarly tempted 
to err there. There is an abruptness and bluntness 
in the manners of some professional men — a com- 
plete treading under foot of all politeness. It may be 
attributed to the fact that they probably associated 
but little with refined society while students ; and 
when they came out into the world, not knowing how 
to behave, they put on the blunt, hair-cloth mode, as 
if conscious of abilities which would suffer them to 
despise form and pohteness. But a man is never 
more mistaken than when he supposes that any 
strength of mind or attainments will render his 

> company agreeable, while his manners are rude. If 
you are accustomed to society, behave as you know 

. how ; if not accustomed to it, behave modestly, and 
you will behave well ; so that, in all your intercourse 
with your fellow-students, always maintain the ap- 
pearance and character of a gentleman, never that 
of a buffoon, or a sloven. And as your character 
now is, in these respects, so it is to be through life. I 
have known students whose wash-stand, and establish- 
ment, showed that they were slovens ; and they were 
never known to improve in these respects. Ke©r» 
your room and person, at all times, just as you wouia 
have it if you expected your mother or sister to make 
6 



82 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Cleanliness. The fable. Ninth direction — doing every thing wellf 

you a visit. Neatness is the word by which to 
designate all that is meant in regard to your personal 
appearance. 

Cleanliness is the first mark of politeness ; it is 
agreeable to others, and is a very pleasant sensation 
to ourselves. The humor of Swift was not misap- 
plied when he describes himself as recovering from 
sickness by changing his linen. A clean, neat 
appearance is always a good letter of introduction. 
May I request my readers to gather the application 
and moral of the following beautiful story : — " A 
dervise, of great sanctity, one morning, had the misfor- 
tune, as he took up a crystal cup, which was conse- 
crated to the prophet, to let it fall upon the ground, 
and dash it to pieces. His son coming in some time 
after, he stretched out his hand to bless him, as his 
manner was every morning ; but the youth, going out, 
stumbled over the threshold and broke his arm. As 
the old man wondered at these events, a caravan 
passed by in its way to Mecca: the dervise ap- 
proached it to beg a blessing ; but as he stroked one 
of the holy camels, he received a kick from the b^st, 
which sorely bruised him ! His sorrow and amaze- 
ment increased upon him, until he recollected that, 
through hurry and inadvertency, he had that morning 
come abroad without washing his hands," 

9. A-cquire the habit of doing every thing iveJl. 

It is well known that Johnson used to write and 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 83 

Johnson. The prize lost. Common thmgs. 

send copy to the press, without even looking it over 
by way of revising. This was the effect of habit. 
He began by composing slowly, but with great 
accuracy. We are naturally impatient of restraint, 
and have so little patience^ at our command, that it is 
a rare thing to find a young man doing any thing as 
well as he can. He wishes to do it quickly. And 
in the conversation of students, you seldom hear one 
tell how well he did this or that, but how quicTcly. 
This is a pernicious habit. Any thing that is worth 
doing at all, is worth doing well ; and a mind well 
disciplined in other respects, is defective, if it have 
not this habit. A young man, who unexpectedly lost 
the affections of a young lady, of whom he was 
sufficiently fond, informed his friend, with a good 
degree of shrewdness, that he doubted not that he 
lost the prize from a very small circumstance. She 
handed him a letter which she had been writing to a 
friend, and asked him to direct it. He did so, but in 
a manner so hurried and slovenly, (for it was his 
great ambition to be quick in doing any thing,) that 
she blushed when she received it. From that little 
circumstance her affections seemed to cool, until they 
were dead to him. His friend comforted him by 
saying that " she was more than half right." 

This incident is mentioned, not on account of its 
dignity, but to illustrate the point in hand. Every 
thing should be done ivell, and practice will soon 



84 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Euripides. Buonaparte. McDonough's victory. 

enable you to do it quickly. How many are misera- 
ble readers, and miserable writers, as to manner and 
matter, because they do not possess this habit! 
Euripides used to compose but three lines, while a 
contemporary poet composed three hundred ; but one 
wrote for immortality, and the other for the day. 
Your reading had better be but little, your conversa- 
tions but few, your compositions short and well 
^one. The man who is in a " great hurry," is com- 
monly the one who hurries over the small stages of the 
journey, without making the great business of life 
to consist in accotnplishing as much as possible. 
The great secret of Buonaparte's skill as a warrior, 
consisted in this ; that he did his business thoroughly : 
if he met an army in two or three divisions, he did 
not divide his army in the same proportion. No: he 
brought all his strength to bear upon one point, until 
that was annihilated. So with McDonough, during 
our last war. He directed all his force, every gun, 
against the " big ship " of the enemy. No matter 
how pressing or annoying others might be ; every ball 
was to be sent towards the •'' big ship," till her guns 
were silent. This is a good principle to carry out in 
regard to every thing. 

" How is it that you do so much ? " said one in 
astonishment at the efforts and success of a great 
man. " Why, I do but one thing at a time, and try to 
iM'^sh it once for all." I would therefore have you 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 85 

Tenth direction — temper. Goldsmith's temper. 

keep this in mind: — Do not send a letter home 
blotted or hurried, and ask them to excuse it, because 
you are in a hurry. You have no right to be in such 
a hurry. It is doing injustice to yourself. Do not 
make a memorandum so carelessly, that in five years 
you can make nothing of it. Do not hurry any thing 
so that you know not what you do, or do not know 
certainly about it, and have to trust to vague impres- 
sions. What we call a superficial character, is formed 
in this way ; and none who are not" careful to form 
and cherish the habit of doing every thing welly may 
expect to be any thing else than superficial. 

10. Make constant efforts to he master of your 
temper. 

The often-quoted remark of Solomon, in regard to 
authorship and study, is true to life ; and that study 
which is such a " weariness to the flesh," will almost 
certainly reach the nerves, and render you more or 
less liable to be irritated. Who would have thought 
that the elegant Goldsmith would, in his retirement, 
have been peevish and fretful? So, we are told, was 
the fact. And perhaps he who could write the Citi- 
zen of the World, and the Deserted Village, and the 
Vicar of Wakefield, exhausted his nerves, in trying 
to be kind-hearted and pleasant in his writings ; so 
that, when he felt back into real life, he had no mate- 
rials left with which to" be agreeable. Be this as it 
may, it is not unfrequently the case, that he who can 



86 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Danger to a student. Manliness. Contentment. 

appear kind and pleasant with liis pen, and when 
abroad, is nevertheless s;rowinp: sour and crabbed in 
his study. Hence it has sometimes been said of a 
student, " He is at times the most agreeable, and at 
times the most disagreeable of men." It will require 
no small exertion, on your part, to become master of 
yourself. He that is master of his own spirit, is a 
hero indeed. Nothing grows faster by indulgence, 
than the habit of speaking to a companion hastily : it 
soon becomes, so fixed that it lasts throuo;h life. In 
order to avoid it, cultivate manliness of character. 
Be frank and open-hearted. Not merely appear so, 
but really he so. There is an openness, a nobleness 
of soul, about some men, which is quickly discovered, 
and as highly valued. We know that there is 
originally a difference in men. Some seem to be 
born small, close, misanthropic, and their whole 
contour is on a contracted scale. But there is no 
reason why they should yield to this constitutional 
trait, and become more and more so. You may have 
been neglected in your childhood in this respect ; but 
this is no reason why you should neglect yourself. 
You will often see students, whose means are small, 
much respected for their nobleness and manliness of 
character. I mention this, that you may not forget 
that it is not the circumstance of being rich or poor, 
which creates this trait in your character. 

Be contented in your situation. Nothing will 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 87 

Petty troubles. Imaginary inferiority. 

sooner render any one disagreeable, or sooner destroy 
his own peace, than a discontented spirit. Who 
can expect to master himself, to master languages, to 
master mathematics, and to master a thousand diffi- 
culties, while obtaining a thorough and complete 
education, without meeting with discouragements ? 
Who ever undertook to explore a great region, 
without meeting with hot suns, and cold rains, with 
clouds of dust, and swarms of flies ? — Your room is 
not pleasant. It is to be regretted; but, as the 
traveller said about his straw-bed on the garret floor, 
" he could get a great deal of good sleep out of it," 
you can study hard and thoroughly in it. You will 
hereafter often be called to task your mind under 
circumstances vastly worse.— Your room-mate is not 
good-tempered or agreeable. Very like ; but he will 
become much better by associating with you, if you 
are faithful to yourself. He may have had poor 
advantages ; he may naturally possess a disposition 
peculiarly cross-grained ; but he is susceptible of 
great improvement ; and if you are faithful, he will 
alter more than you can now imagine. How many 
young men have been saved from ruin by the 
example and kind warnings of their room-mates ! — 
Your boarding-place is not to your mind. Very 
like ; but as the great object is the mind, rather than 
the body, you will soon cease to regard it, if you do 
not stop to brood over it. — You see others with more 



88 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Reverie. It is common. 

pocket-money, and better dressed, than yourself. 
True ; but remember that the recitation-room is the 
place where scholars are measured, and that neither 
broadcloth nor pocket-money will avail there. You 
will not un frequently notice a great difference in the 
appearance of the same scholars when on the prome- 
nade and in the recitation-room. You will find 
many who can do much better in demonstrating the 
fashions of the day, than in demonstrating the 
problems in spherical trigonometry, or in construing 
Thucydides. Will you envy such, and repine at 
your circumstances ? 

Another way to avoid discontent and peevishness, 
is carefully to avoid reverie. Castle-building cannot 
be laughed out of existence, else had it long since 
been no more. The mischiefs of it are immense. 
We are not satisfied with what we now are ; we have 
no patience to dig, and wait, and grow to eminence ; 
and so we go off on the wings of imagination, and 
range through all desirable conditions, and select one, 
and at once sit down on empire or greatness. Nature 
and fortune never combined to create such an 
Elysium for fallen man as you can at once create for 
yourself. Fancy soon obtains the victor}* over the 
soul ; for it is vastly more easy for us to sit in our 
chair, and dream ourselves into statesmen and orators, 
rulers, and movers of the world, than to put forth the 
exertions required to become tolerable in actual life, 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 89 

Reverie sours the feelings. 

in any profession. The sage, in Rasselas, who spent 
his time and thoughts, and wore himself down for ten 
years, in guiding and regulating the planets and sea- 
sons, was wise, in comparison with many who live in 
reverie ; for his feelings became mellowed and kind, 
whereas, in most cases, the whole influence of these 
day-dreams is bad. They decidedly sour the feel- 
ings. Notice your own feelings. As you descend 
upon the world after a season of communing with 
fancy, it seems like a forsaken castle, cold and cheer- 
less. In these reveries, you will meet with enemies 
enough; but it is only that fancy may lift you above 
them, and show you how superior you are to every 
thing like difficulties or opposition. I am confident 
that I do not speak at random when I say, I have 
known young men whose feelings became morose, and 
their countenances became tfxu^pwn'oi, like those of the 
Pharisees, wholly in consequence of frequently en- 
countering legions of enemies and troubles in their 
reveries. Let the iniagination become your master, 
and hold the reins, and you will soon become a dis- 
contented spirit. At this point, I am persuaded, in- 
sanity frequently begins. Indeed, he who lives in an 
imaginary world is, quoad hoc, insane. Who can be 
pleasant and good-natured, after having sat an hour, 
persuading himself that he was electrifying the senate, 
or melting a jury, or overwhelming a city congregation, 
with a nation gazing at-his greatness, and then sud- 



90 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Eleventh direction — sound judgment. The troublesome watch. 

denly awaking, and finding that he dreads to have the 
hour of reciting arrive ? 

11. Cultivate soundness of judgment. 
Some can decide, almost intuitively, upon the char- 
acter of the last person they have met. So of a book. 
They can turn it over, read part of a page here, and a 
sentence or two in another place, and decide, unhes- 
itatingly, upon its merits. When a prejudice has 
once entered your mind against a man or an author, 
it is hard to eradicate it. It warps the judgment 
and makes you partial. If this habit be indulg- 
ed, the mind sopn becomes habituated to act from 
prejudice, rather than judgment. " A perfectly just 
and sound mind is a rare and invaluable gift. But it 
is still much more unusual to see such a mind unbias- 
ed in all its actings. God has given this soundness of 
mind but to few ; and a very small number of those 
iQw escape the bias of some predilection, perhaps ha- 
bitually operating ; and none, at all times, are perfect- 
ly free. I once saw this subject forcibly illustrated. 
A watch-maker told me that a gentleman had put an 
exquisite watch into his hands, that went irregularly. 
It was as perfect a piece of work as was ever made. 
He took it to pieces, and put it together again, twenty 
times. No manner of defect was to be discovered ; 
and yet the watch went intolerably. At last it struck 
him, that possibly the balance-wheel might have been 
. near a magnet : on applying a needle to it, he found 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 91 

Judg-ing-of your own character. The officer's method. 

his suspicions true : here was all the mischief. The 
steel works in the other parts of the watch had a per- 
petual influence on its motions; and the watch went 
as well as possible with a new wheel. If the sound- 
est mind be magnetized by any predilection, it must 
act irregularly." 

As to judging of your own character, do not forget, 
that every man is almost sure to over-rate his own 
importance. Our friends flatter us, and our own 
hearts still more. Our faults are not seen, or, if seen, 
passed over, or softened down, by both of these par- 
ties. The judgment of our enemies, though more 
severe upon us, is more likely to be correct. They 
at least open our eyes to defects, which we were in 
danger of never seeing. Another thing is to be no- 
ticed. The world praises you for this or that thing 
which you do. If, on examination, you find the mo- 
tives of that action wrong and sinful, are you, then, 
judging correctly, if you estimate your character by 
their judgment ? Many of our virtues are of a doubt- 
ful nature, and we are in danger of placing all such 
on the credit side of the ledo;er. ^ 

An officer in our army, of high character and prom- 
ise, told me that he once sat down to weigh the princi- 
ple of entire abstinence from ardent spirit, and to de- 
cide whether it was his duty, in his circumstances, to 
adopt it. He took a large sheet of paper, and began by 
setting down, in regular order, all the reasons why the 



92 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Twelfth direction — treatment of friends. 

principle of entire abstinence ought not to prevail. 
The list was somewhat long and imposing. He felt 
pretty sure that he might safely take that side of the 
question. But to make it perfectly sure, he began to 
set down, on another page, the arguments on the other 
side. They soon began to grow and grow, till he was 
astonished at their number and weight. They quick- 
ly out-numbered their opponents ; and it did not at 
first strike his attention, that he had several put down 
against entire abstinence which belonged to the other 
side. These were shifted and altered, till, at last^ 
with one dash of the pen, he blotted out the few that 
remained ; and, though he has now forgotten the 
steps of the process, yet, from that hour to this, he 
has never had a doubt on the question. This is what I 
mean by cultivating soundness of judgment. The pro- 
cess may be slower than to jump to conclusions, but it 
is much more satisfactory, and will give you the habit 
of weighing and judging correctly. 

1 2. Treatment of ])arents, friends, and companions. 

I hope it will appear that I am not out of place in 
trying to lead you to make the proper treatment of 
friends a habit. Whether you intend it or not, it will 
become so. Remember that, when you are away 
from home, you are more likely to forget and neglect 
your parents, than they are to forget you. You are 
in new scenes, forming new acquaintances. They 
stay at home ; they see your room, your clothes — 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 93 

Parents' anxiety. Illustration. Writing' to friends.- 

walk over the rooms where j^our voice has been so 
often and so long heard. They follow you away; 
they miss you at the table, and speak of you ; they 
let no day pass without speaking of you, and at night 
they send their thoughts away after you, and have a 
thousand anxieties about you, which nothing but your 
attentions can remove or alleviate. The poet beauti- 
fully compares this anxiety for absent friends to that 
of the bird which leaves her young. She constantly 
fears the serpent will find them during her absence, 
though she knows her presence could do them no 
good. 

" Comes minore sum futums in metu, 
Qui major absentes habet ; 
Ut assidens implumibus pullis avis 
Serpentium allapsus timet 
Magis relictis : nou ut adsit, auxili 
Latura plus prsesentibus." 

You cannot act the part of a dutiful child, without 
daily sending your thoughts home. Write to friends 
often, and at stated times. Any correspondence be- 
tween friends is, in all respects, more valuable, inter- 
esting, useful and pleasant to all parties, for being reg- 
ular and at stated times. You then know when to 
write, and when to expect a letter, and there is no 
wondering why a letter does not come, and no chiding 
for negligence. Enter into no correspondence, unless 
it be on occasional business, which will not be so val- 



94 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Example. Letter from a soq. 

uable that you wish to continue it; and then have 
periodical times of writing. To your parents, i% 
should be at least once every month. In these letters, 
talk out your feelings in that easy, cheerful manner, 
that you would were you at home, and entertaining the 
family circle in the vacation. 1 shall not ask pardon 
for introducing here a letter from one, whose attentions 
to the person addressed have never been regretted. 
The letter needs no expositor, and, as it seems to me, 
no apology for being inserted here. 

" College, Tuesday Evening. 

" My dear Mother, 

Though I am now sitting with my back 
towards you, yet I love you none the less ; and, what » 
is quite as strange, I can see you just as plainly as 
if I stood peeping in upon you. I can see you all, just 
as you sit round the family table. Tell me, if I do 
not see you. There is mother, on the right of the 
table, with her knitting, and a book open before her ; 
and anon she glances her eyes from the work on 
paper to that on her needles ; now counts the stitches, 
and then puts her eye on the book, and starts off for 
another round. There is Mary, looking wise, and 
sewing with all her might, now and then stopping to 
give Sarah and Louisa a lift in getting their lessons, 
and trying to initiate them into the mysteries of ge- 
ography. She is on the left of the table. There, in 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 95 

Letter from a son. 

the back ground, is silent Joseph, with his slate, now 
making a mark, and then biting his lip, or scratching 
his head, to see if the algebraic expression may have 
hidden in either of those places. George is in the 
kitchen, tinkering his skates, 5r contriving a trap for that 
old offender of a rat, whose cunning has so long brought 
mortification upon all his boastings. I can now hear 
his hammer, and his whistle — that peculiar, sucking-sort 
of whistle, which always indicates a puzzled state of 
the brain. Little William and Henry are snug in bed, 
and, if you will just open their bed-room door, you will 
barely hear them breathe. And now, mother has 
stopped, and is absent and thoughtful, and my heart 
tells me that she is thinking of her only absent child. 
Who can he be ? Will you doubt any more that I have 
studied magic, and can see with my back turned to 
you, and many a hill and valley between us ? 

You have been even kinder than I expected, or 
you promised. I did not expect to hear from you till 
to-morrow, at the earliest. But as I was walking, to- 
day, one of my class-mates cries, "A bundle for you 
at the stage-office ! " and away I went as fast as the 
dignity of a sophomore would allow me. The bundle 
I seized, and muffled it under my eloak, though it 
made my arm ache, and, with as much speed as my 
" conditions " would permit me, I reached my room. 
Out came my knife, and, forgetting ah your good ad- 
vice about *' strings and fragments," the said bundle 



96 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Letter from a son. 

quickly owned me victor, and opened its very heart to 
me ; and it had a warm heart too, for there were the 
stockings, (they are now on my feet, i.e. one pair,) 
and there were the flannels, and the bosoms, and the 
gloves, and the pincusUion from Louisa, and the 
needle-book from Sarah, and the paper 'from Mary, 
and the letters and love from all of you. I spread 
open my treasures, and both my heart and feet danced 
for joy, while my hands actually rubbed each other 
out of sympathy. Thanks to you all, for bundle, and 
letters, and love. One corner of my eye is now moist- 
ened, while I say, " Thank ye all, gude folks." I must 
not forget to mention the apples — '^the six apples, 
one from each " — and the beautiful little loaf of cake. 
I should not dare call it little, if it had not brought the 
name from you. The apples I have smelled of, and 
the cake I have just nibbled a little, and pronounce it 
to be " m the finest taste." 

Now, a word about your letters. I cannot say 
much, for I have only read mother's three times, and 
Mary's twice. Those parts which relate to my own 
acts and doings, greatly edify me. Right glad to find 
that the spectacles fitted mother's eyes so well. You 
wondered how I hit it. Why, have I not been told 
from my very babyhood, " You have your mother's 
eyes ? " And what is plainer, than that, if I have her 
eyes, I can pick out glasses that will fit them ? I am 
glad, too, that the new book is a favorite. I shall 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. . 97 

Letter from a son. 

have to depend on you to read for me, for here I read 
nothing but my lexicon, and, peradventure, dip into 
mathematics. Joseph's knife shall be forthcoming, and 
the orders of William and Henry shall be honored, 
if the apothecary has the pigments. " George is de- 
lighted with his new sled " — a cheering item ; for my 
thumb has retired into his cot, and growled and ached 
ever since, and even now, ever and anon, gives me a 
twinge, by way of recalling the feat of building the 
sled. And you really think the pigs have profited by 
my labors, and thatj though they have forgotten me, 
yet they like the sty 1 If they do well, I shall be 
paid next fall, whether they are grateful or not. 
Old Charley should be kept warm. He has carried 
us too many miles to be neglected now. I am sorry 1 
did not have his condition more in mind when at home. 
Poor fellow, I enjoyed his aid, and helped to make 
him grow old. And old Rover, let him have his new 
kennel warm ; and if he thinks so much of me as to 
"go to my room" after me, let him have my old 
wrapper. One member more, — tell Sukey that, 
though I mention her after horses and dogs, it is not 
out of any want of respect. I will wear the mittens 
which she knit and sent, and, in return, though I can- 
not approve, will send as much, at least, of " real 
Scotch," as will fill her box. 

I suppose the pond is all frozen over, and the skat- 
ing good. I know it is foolish ; yet, if mother and 
7 ' . 



98 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Letter from a son. 

Mary had skated as many " moony " nights as I have, 
they would sigh, not at the thought^ but at the fact 
that skating days are over. Never v^^as a face more 
bright and beautiful than the face of that pond in a 
clear J cold night, under a full moon. Do the boys go 
down by my willow still ? and do they still have the 
flag on the little island in the centre, where I used to 
rear the flag-staff once a year? I was going to tell 
you all about college. But when I think 1 will begin, 
pop ! — ray thoughts are all at home ! What a place 
home is ! I would not now exchange ours for wealth 
enough to make you all kings and queens. 

I am warm, well, and comfortable : we all study 
some ; and dull fellows like me have to confess that 
we study hard. We have no genius to help us. 
My chum is a good fellow : — he now sits in yonder 
corner — his feet poised upon the stove in such a way, 
that the dullness seems to have all run out of his heels 
into his head, for he is fast asleep. 

I have got it framed, and there it hangs — the pic- 
ture of my father! I never look up without seeing it, 
and I never see it without thinking that my mother is 
a widow, and that I am her eldest son. What more 
I think, I will not be fool enough to say : you will 
imagine it better than I can say it. 

Your gentle hint, dear mother, about leaving my 
Bible at home, was kind ; but it will relieve you to 
know that I left it designedly, and, in its place, took 



I'HE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 99 

Effects of letter- writing'. Choosing' friends. 

my dear father's from the uppet- shelf in our little 
library room; and what is more, I read it every day. 

I need not say, Write ! write ! for I know that some 
of you will, at the end of thl'ee weeks. But love to 
you all, and much too. I shall tell you of my methods 
of economy in my next. 

Your affectionate son, &£c." 

Can any of my readers doubt but a letter like the 
above, would do much to alleviate the anxiety of the 
mother, and add greatly to- the comfort of the family ? 
Every son can show such attentions, and at the same 
time keep his ovs^n heart warm with the remem- 
brances of home and kindred. It will add to your ease 
in letter-writing, and it will cultivate some of the no- 
blest and sweetest virtues of which the heart is sus- 
ceptible. 

I would say a few words on the choice and treat- 
ment of friends ; and, as this subject is treated of by 
almost every writer, I shall be brief. You must have 
some, and will have some, with whom you are more 
intimate than with the rest of your companions. 
There are two special difficulties attending friendships; 
first, it is hard to acquire a real friend ; and, secondly, 
it is still harder to keep him. The acquaintance, 
which is afterwards ripened into friendship, is, of 
course, in the first place, casual. And those who are 
6rst to extend the hand to embrace you. are seldom 



100 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

What traits of character necessary. 

those whose friendship continues long. Be cautious 
in selecting your, friends, and look long and well be- 
fore you allow any one to say, that he is your bosom- 
companion, and that yoli share each other's thoughts 
and secrets. In selecting your friends, you will re- 
member that you will borrow habits, traits of charac- 
ter, modes of thought and expression, from each other ; 
and, therefore, be careful to select those who have not 
excellences merely, but whose faults are as few as 
may be. Some rely too much upon friends, and think 
they will never pass away, and never change. Oth- 
ers, who have known, by experience, that friends may 
do-both, will tell you that friendship is " but a name," 
and means nothing. Extremes are never in the 
right. There is much, both of wisdom and beauty, in 
the following remarks. They are not taken from the 
writings of Confucius, else had they been set in gold , 
long since. 

" Sweet language will multiply friends, and a fair- 
speaking tongue will multiply kind greetings. Be in 
peace with many : nevertheless, have but one counsel- 
lor in a thousand. If thou wouldst get a friend, prove 
him first, and be not hasty to credit him ; for some 
man is a friend for his own occasion, and will not abide 
in the day of thy trouble. Separate thyself from 
thine enemies, and take heed to thy friends. A faith- 
ful friend is a strong defence, and he that hath found 
such a one, hath found a treasure. A faithful friend 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 101 

Beautiful maxims. Esteem necessary to friendship. 

is the medicine of life. Forsake not an old friend, for 
the new is not comparable to him : a new friend is as 
new wine : when it is old, thou shalt drink it with 
pleasure. Whpso casteth a stone at the birds frayeth 
thqm away, and he that upbraideth his friend break- 
eth friendships ; for upbraiding, or pride, or disclosing 
of secrets, or a treacherous wound, every friend will 
depart."' 

" Verbum dulce multiplicat amicos, et lingua eucharis 
in bono homine abundat. Multi pacifici sint tibi, et 
consiliarius sit tibi unus de mille. Si possides amicum, 
in tentatione posside eum, et ne facile credas ei. Est 
enim amicus secundum tempus suum, et non perma- 
nebit in die tribulationis. Ab inimicis tuis, separare, 
et ab amicis tuis attende. Amicus fidelis, protectio 
fortis ; qui autem invenit ilium, invenit thesaurum. 
Amicus fidelis, medicamenlum .vitas. Ne derelin- 
quas amicum antiquum: novus,emm non erit similis 
illi : vinum novum, amicus novus, veterascet, et cum 
suavitate bibes illud. Mittens lapidem in volatilia, 
<iejiciet ilia : sic et qui convitiatur amico, dissoluit ara- 
icitiam : convitiis, et superbia, et mysterii revelatione, 
et plaga dolosa, — in his omnibus efFugiet amicus." * 

No one can long be your friend for whom you have 
not a decided esteem — an esteem that will not permit 

* The lover of classical Latin will please to remember, that I 
no more claim credit for the Latin, than for the beautiful senti- 
ments so inelegantly expressed in it. 



102 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Envy not allowed. Qualifications of a friend. 

you to trifle with his feelings, and which, of course, 
will prevent his trifling with yours. Great familiarity 
is inconsistent with any abiding friendship. 

" The man who hails you Tom, or Jack, 
And proves, by thumping on your back, 

His sense of your great merit, 
Is such a friend that one had need 
Be very much his friend indeed, 

To pardon or to bear it." 

You will soon be ashamed to love one for whom 
you have not a high esteem. Love" will only follow 
esteem. In order to have or keep a friend, you must 
not have a particle of envy towards him, however ex- 
alted his character or merits. Says a beautiful writer, 
" He who can once doubt whether he should rejoice 
in his friend's being happier than himself, may depend 
upon it, that he is an utter stranger to this virtue." 

You will always observe that those friendships 
which are the purest, and the most abiding, are chosen 
for the good qualities of the heart, rather than for 
those of the head. I should be sorry to give the im- 
pression, that the finest qualities of the heart may not 
accompany the highest intellectual character; and I 
am satisfied that there is no good reason why they do 
not. But it has been shrewdly remarked, " 1 do not 
remember that Achates, who is represented as the 
first favorite, either.gives his advice, or strikes a blow, 
through the whole ^Eneid." 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL 103 

How to keep friends. The great duty of friendship. 

Prudence is a prime quality in a friend ; and zeal 
and noise are not always indicative of the greatest 
ability or desire to do you good. But in order to 
have a true friend, you must determine to be to him 
just what you wish him to be to you. While I would 
recommend every young man to commit to memory 
the whole of Cowper's beautiful description of 
" Friendship," I would particularly request him to 
keep the following sentiment uppermost : 

"Who seeks a friend, should come disposed 
T' exhibit, in full bloom disclosed, 
The graces and the beauties 
• That form the character he seeks ; 
For 'tis a union that bespeaks 
Reciprocated duties." 

A similarity of inclinations is by no means essential 
to a perfect and abiding friendship. We admire those 
traits of cliaracter which we do not ourselves possess. 
They are new to us, and we feel that from them we 
can supply our own defects. 

Although it is considered one great duty of friend- 
ship to discover faults, and give reproofs, yet it is a 
dangerous duty. It must be done very delicately and 
kindly, and be sure not too frequently. There were 
once two friends, room-mates, who agreed that, every 
night, they would tell each other every thing, which 
they had seen during the day, which was in the least 
degree out of the way. They did so a while. They 



104 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 



The true duty of a friend. Veracity essential. 



did it kindly ; but it was too much for poor human 
nature. They soon parted, and took new rooms, but 
without ever disclosing to each other the true cause, 
even if they were conscious of it at the time. I. do 
not, on the whole, believe it is the appropriate busi- 
ness of a friend to discover faults and reprove you — 
but it is, to support you in high and noble pursuits, 
raising your spirits, and adding to your courage, till 
you out-do yourself. Are those families the happiest, 
where every member is to be tried by a constant or 
frequent fault-finding ? Far from it. If you wish your 
friend to do well, encourage him, sustain him when 
in trials or troubles, and thus you become the " med- 
icine of life." Cultivate your old friends : but you 
must form new ones also ; for our changes by removal 
and death are so frequent, that he who now makes no 
new friends will soon find himself without any. Need 
it be said, that a strict and unwavering regard for truth 
is absolutelv essential to havino; friends ? We do not 
wish to be associated with those whose veracity can, 
in the least, be suspected. " When speech is em- 
ployed as the vehicle of falsehood, every man must 
disunite himself from others, inhabit his own cave, and 
seek prey only for himself," and in vain ask or seek 
for a friend. 

I have dwelt somewhat on this point, — longer, per- 
haps, than was to be expected, under the title of this 
chapter. But it is my wish that all my readers may 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 105 

Part of daily habits to cultivate friends. 

have friends, select, disinterested friends ; and I know- 
that they cannot, unless they make it a part of their 
daily habits and business to cultivate their own hearts, 
and render themselves worthy of being beloved. The 
tree cannot hve and thrive without great care ; but if it 
receive that care, it will bear fruit abundantly for many 
years. How often has the heart of my reader thrilled 
at the vi^arm greetings of one who said, " Your father 
and I were friends ! " Friendship can lessen no joy 
by having a sharer. It brightens every one. At the 
same, time, it diminishes sorrow, in every shape, by 
dividing the burden. 

" Hast thou a friend ? — thou hast indeed 
A rich and large supply — 
" Treasure to serve your every need, 
Well managed, till you die." 



CHAPTER III. 



STUDY. 



When the company had wearied themselves in 
trying to make an egg stand on its end, they were 
amazed at the simphcity pf the thing, when once they 
had seen Columbus do it. 

" Why, any body can do that ! " 

" Why, then, did you not ? " was the searching 
reply. 

It seems to be an easy affair to study. There is 
the room', and there the books ^nd there the lesson : 
what more do you want ? You want to know how to 
go to work — how to study. The interruptions to 
study, even when the student has nothing else to do, 
— not a care, not a burden of any kind to trouble him, 
— are numerous and vexatious. Deductions must be 
made for ill health, and seasons when the spirits' droop, 
and when there is a total disrelish for study, and a 
want of courage, by which the mind can be brought 
up to action ; for a total ignorance of the best methods 
of studying ; for the interruptions of companions who 
have yawned over their own books, till they could 
make httle or nothing out of them, and then have come 
to get sympathy and countenance from others ; for 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 107 

Interruptions cannot be avoided. Number of hours of study. 

the time wasted in reading novels, or other useless 
books; and, above all, for that natural, inherent indo- 
lence, which recoils from the task of rebuking the 
- wandering of the thoughts, and bringing them back 
to their prescribed tasks. Escaping from home will 
not relievethe difficulty; neither will removing from 
one school to another, or changing one college for' 
another. You must make up your mind that no one 
can go on in a course of study without interruptions 
from within and from without. Calculate upon this. 
And it is well that it is so ; for, in real life, if you can 
get two full hours in a week without interruption, you 
may think it extraordinary. The mind must form the 
habit of being checked and interrupted, and of bring- 
ing itself back to the point from which it was taken 
off, and at once pursuing the train of mental operations 
in which it was engaged. Till this power is obtained, 
you are not prepared for active life ; and in propor- 
tion as it is acquired, in that proportion will little hin- 
derances appeal' to you of litde consequence. I pro- 
pose to make some suggestions in the form of hints 
in relation to study, not so much regarding the order 
of their introduction, as endeavoring not to omit any 
that are of real importance. 

1. The numher of hours of daily study. 

No fixed time can be marked out for all. This 
must vary wnth the constitution of each individual. A 
mind that moves slowly requires and will bear more 



108 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. . 

German students. Severe application. 

time for study. In Germany, the students spend 
many more hours than we can in this country. I 
have tried to account for the fact, that, with their pre- 
posterous habits of eating and indolence, they can 
study so many hours in a day, and that to extreme old 
age. Doubtless national habits do something ; indi- 
* vidual habits do something ; but these will not account 
. for it. Many of them v/ill study sixteen hours a day ; 
few of them less than thirteen. We should all die 
under it ! The difference may be attributed to two 
causes, for the correctness of which I cannot vouch ; 
viz. their mental operations are slower than ours, 
and their climate is less variable and better adapt- 
ed to a student's life. Few, in our own country, 
ever studied half as much as they have, if hours 
are to be the criterion. But another remark may 
here be made. Germany is distinguished for the 
study of the classics, for the making of lexicons and 
commentaries, and for studies of such a nature as 
require diligence and accuracy, but make no very 
great draft upon the soul. Be this as it may, it is 
certain that we must do what we do, by way of 
daily study, in fewer hours ; and, in my view, it is 
vastly better to chain the attention down closely, and 
study hard, a few hours, than to try to keep it moder- 
ately fixed and engaged for a greater length of time. 
Our most successful students seldom study over six 
hours in, a day. In tliis I include nothing of recita- 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 109 

Positions of the body. 

tions, of desultory, half-formed impulses of the 
mmd; but I mean real, hard, devoted, study. He 
who would study six hours a day, with all the atten- 
tion of which the soul is capable, need not fear but he 
will yet stand high in his calling. But mark me, — it 
must be study as intense as the soul will bear. The at- 
tention must all be absorbed ; the thoughts must all be 
brought in, and turned upon the object of study, ^as: 
you would turn the collected rays of the sun into 
the focus of the glass, when you would get fire from 
those rays. Do not call miscellaneous reading, or any 
thing which you do by way of relief or amusement, 
study : it is not study. Be sure to get as much of 
your study in the morning as possible. The mind is 
then in good order. Aurora musis arnica, necnon 
vesper a. 

2. Have regard to the positions of the body while 
engaged in study. 

Some men, from early life, habituate themselves to 
study, sitting at a low, flat table. This ought to be 
avoided ; for, as you advance in life, that part of the 
body which is between the shoulders and hips, becomes 
more and more feeble, and consequently the stooping 
habit is acquired. Few literary men walk or sit per- 
fectly erect. Standing is undoubtedly the best method 
of study, if you will only begin in this way. In wri- 
ting, in the study of languages, and most kinds of math- 
ematics, you must^be confined to one spot. If you 



110 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL, v 

Grimke's plan. Chairs and lights. 

can change positions, and stand a part, and sit a part 
of the time, it will be well ; but the former should pre- 
ponderate. As you advance in life, you will naturally 
sit more and more, till the habit becomes fixed. Few 
men are seen standing at their books after forty years 
of age. The late talented, and lamented Grimke, in- 
forms us that he uniformly stood, and did most of his 
studying while walking in his room. If you are com- 
posing, or reading, or committing to memory, this 
position is a desirable one. Be sure you have your ta- 
ble high enough, and keep clear of the rocking-chair, 
with a writing leaf on the arm of it. Sitting in such 
a chair gives the body a twisting position, which is al- 
most sure to lead to poor health, and not unfrequently 
to the grave. If possible, place your table, the top of 
which should so slope a little, that the light may fall 
upon you from behind. This will be a kindness to 
the eyes. In the evening, it is well to have the lamp 
shaded, or to have a ^ shade draw^n over the eyes. I 
would hope, however, that you keep your lessons so 
much in advance, that the necessity of putting your 
eyes to a severe trial, will be avoided. If your eyes 
are weak, be careful that a glare of light does not fall 
ijpon them ; and be sure to wash them in cold water 
the last thing at night, and the first in the morn- 
ing. The great desideratum in the choice of positions, 
is, to keep the body as straight as possible. A bending 
at the chest is by all means to be avoided. Your 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. Ill 

No conversation m study hours. Studying aloud. 

dress, even to the slipper, should sit as loosely as possi- 
ble ; and the house which is now to stand still, and in 
which the mind is to labor, should be as easy as it can 
be, without assuming a position which, by long habit, 
will court the embrace of sleep. 

3. Ldet there he no conversation in the hours of study. 
This direction goes on the supposition that you 
have a room-mate, which is usually the case. A les-* 
son is easily spoiled by being interrupted, every now 
and then, with some question, raised on that, or on some 
other subject. ^ You cannot study to advantage if any 
conversation is allowed in the room. But what if you 
find a word in your lesson, whose meaning or whose 
parsing you cannot determine ? What is to be done ? 
May you not ask your friend ? I reply, no. Keep the 
room silent. If you wish to review and compare to- 
gether, then begin a half hour earlier, and leave off 
half an hour before reciting, and in this time, go over 
the lesson together. Have the words, about which 
you doubted, just marked with a pencil, and then set- 
tle their meaning and their relations. This review 
should not take place till you have each exhausted 
your own efforts upon the lesson, and until you have 
definitely settled every word and every sentence. 

SomiC are in the habit of studying aloud together, 
or in small clubs ; — a very bad practice. The habit is 
soon formed, so that the mind refuses to make any 
efforts alone ; and then it becomes necessary to have 



113 ' THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 



Thorough study. How to conquer a country. 

a constant " Bee " to aid it, just as the partially civil- 
ized tribes of the Pacific ocean, refuse even to thatch 
a cottage, unless they have a great company to work 
together. This cannot be the mode of study through 
life ; and no habit should now be allowed, which will 
be troublesome hereafter. The sagacity and perse- 
verance of our own minds are to be the ultimate re- 
sources on which we shall all be obliged to rely. But 
if the tongue refuses to be silent, and conversation 
cannot be banished from your room, be careful to have 
it on the lesson, and on no other subject. 

4. Be thorough in every study. 

Passing over a field of study has been graphically 
compared to conquering a country. If you thoroughi- 
Jy conquer every thing you meet, you will pass on 
from victory to victory ; but if you l6ave here and 
there a fort or a garrison not subdued, you will soon 
have an army hanging on your rear, and your ground 
will soon need re-conquering. Never pass over a 
single thing, however mipute, or apparently of little 
consequence, without understanding all that can be 
known about it. " Socrates ille non hominum mode, 
verum etiam Apollinis oraculo, sapientissimus judica- 
tus, et perennis Phijosophiae Fons, dicere solet : * Ra- 
dicem quidem eruditionis peramarum esse, sed fruc- 
tum habere jucundissimum ; initioque magnos adferre 
labores, sed honestissimum sudantibus prasmium re- 
ponere.' Ergo, O Tu, quisquis es, cui ignea vis in 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. ^113 

Inaccurate scholars, how made. 

pectore exarsit, cui flamma in praicordiis micat, procul 
absint mollia, lenia, facilia, blanda, quae animi ineptum 
extinguere solent. Dura petamus." 

He who accustoms himself to pass over a word or 
sentence, or a single point of mathematical inquiry, 
without thoroughly understanding every thing that can 
be known about it, will soon be known as an inaccu- 
rate scholar ; will feel but half confident on any sub- 
ject ; and, what is worse, will have acquired a habit 
which will forever make his knowledge vague and un- 
certain, both to himself and to others. There is such 
a constant mortification and loss of self-respect attend- 
ing the habit of going upon the surface, that, were it 
only for personal comfort, you should be thorough. 
At the first setting out, your progress will be slower 
— perhaps very slow ; but, in the long race before you, 
you will be the gainer. How often have I seen a 
man, with a mind originally bright, chagrined and 
humbled at his want of accuracy ! He makes an as- 
sertion, and calls it a quotation from some distinguish- 
ed author. " Does Burke say so, and advocate that 
sentiment ? I never understood him so," says an ac- 
curate listener. He now begins to hesitate — apolo- 
gizes — says it is a great while since he read Burke, but 
such is his impression. Has he not fallen in the esti- 
mation oi every one present, and in his own also ? And 
yet, such is the habit fixed upon him, that he will go and 
again tread over the same ground with hesitating steps. 
8 



114 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

The two farms. Example from Moli^re. 

Two farms may lie side by side ; the one may be 
"run over" by the hand of the cultivator. Here, is 
a poor spot of mowing, and there, a miserable-look- 
ing corn-field, and yonder, a wretched fern pasture. 
It covers a great extent of territory, but no part of 
it is subdued or cultivated. The other farm has its 
fences in order, its mowing lots all side by side, and 
its fields, so far as any thing is done, perfectly subdu- 
ed. Every acre that claims to have been subdued, 
will bear a certain, a definite, and a full crop. Is 
there any doubt which of the two farms is more prof- 
itable, or which method of cultivation is the most wise ? 

How much better is knowledge — something that 
you T{:now — than any amount of conjecture formed 
somewhere in the region of knowledge ! Have you 
never seen the face of an educated man — i. e. of one 
who ought to have been educated — gather a blank 
upon it, at the sound of a Latin or Greek quota- 
tion ? Like the hero in one of Moliere's comedies, 
he understands it, but wishes it translated. The apt- 
ness and humor of the case will justify my quoting it. 

" Le M. de Phil. Ce sentiment est raisonnable ; 
nam sine doctrind vita est quasi mortis imago. Vous 
entendez cela, et vous entendez le Latin sans doute? 

" M. Jour. Oui, mais faites comme si je ne le 
savais pas : expliquez-moi ce que oela veut dire ! 

" Le M. de Phil. Cela veut dire, que sans la sci- 
enoe, la vie est presque I'image de la mort. 



V 

THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 115 

Example of a thorough scholar. Thoughts to be followed. 

*' M. Jour. Ce Latin-la a raison." 

Every thing should be understood as far as you go ; 
and never should you allow yourself to think of going 
into the recitation-room, and there trust to " skin- 
ning," as it is called in some colleges, or " phrasing," 
as in others, or " mouthing it," as in others. No 
man who regards his reputation as a scholar, will ever 
do this. 

One lesson or one book, perfectly and thoroughly 
understood, would do you more good than ten lessons, 
or ten books, not half studied. Mr. Evarts, to whom 
allusion has already been made, read his Greek Testa- 
ment so thoroughly while fitting for college, that he 
was in the habit, through life, of readily repeating any 
passage to which allusion was made. And several 
of our best scholars committed and recited the whole 
of Virgil without carrying a book into the recitation- 
room. One of them, at least, did the same with the 
whole of Horace. 

" When you have a mind to improve a single 
thought, or to be clear in any particular point, do not 
leave it till you are master of it. View it in every 
light. Try how many ways you can express it, and 
which is shortest and best. Would you enlarge upon 
it, hunt it down from author to author ; some of 
which will suggest hints concerning it, which, perhaps, 
never occurred to you before ; and give every circum- 
stance its weight. Thus, by being master of every 



116 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Translations of classics. 

subject as you proceed, though you make but a small 
progress in [the number of books which you study,] 
you will make a speedy one in useful knowledge. To 
leave matters undetermined, and the mind unsatisfied 
in what we study, is but to multiply half-notions, in- 
troduce confusion, and is the way to make a pedant, 
but not a scholar." 

Some plausible and ingenious things have been said 
in favor of using translations to Latin and Greek au- 
thors. My own observation has not been as extended 
as that of very many ; but, so far as it does go, I can 
unhesitatingly say, that I never knew any other than 
miserable scholars made by the use of translations. I 
have seen scholars use a translation of Virgil, another 
of Horace, and as many as they could get to authors se- 
lected in Graeca Majora; and though they recited 
smoothly at the time, and perhaps even better than 
those who dug it all out, yet I am confident they knew 
less about Latin and Greek at the end of every year. 
I am sorry to disturb the feelings of any reader who has 
a faithful translation carefully put away in his drawer 
or desk, and at which he now and then so stealthfuUy 
peeps ; but let him continue to use it, and I will warrant 
him that soon, though the reason may not be assigned, or 
even known, he will lose all that respect which belongs 
solely to a thorough student. I have known those 
who studied Horace with a translation, and though 
they went off '•' smartly " at the time, not able, at the 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 117 

Their effects. Expect hard i.tudy. 

end of two years, to read an ode. " Go to the foun- 
tain head. Read original authors, rather than collect 
translated and retailed thoughts. It will give you 
more satisfaction, more certainty, more judgment, and 
more confidence, when those authors are the subjects 
of conversation, than you can have by taking your 
knowledge of them at second hand. It is trusting to 
translations, quotations, and epitomes, that makes so 
many half-scholars so impertinently wise." 

Some friend may offer to aid you by translations, or 
by books interlined with a pen, or by furnishing you 
with mathematical problems all wrought out. Such 
kindnesses ought to be shown only to an enemy, whom 
he would have pursued by his vengeance through life. 
They are the greatest cruelties which an enemy could 
possibly invent. If you cannot stand on your own 
feet, do not borrow crutches which will be taken from 
you soon, and which will effectually prevent you from 
ever having strength to walk alone. 

5. Expect to become familiar with hard study. 
Study, which is hard for one man, is easy for an- 
other. Not only so, but the study which is easy to 
you to-day, may be intolerably irksome at another 
time. This is owing to the difficulty of confining the 
attention closely. The health being the same, study 
would at all times be equally agreeable, had we the 
same command over the attention. But who, that has 
tried it, does not know how much easier it is to study 



118 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 



President Dwight. 



on a cold, stormy day in winter, when every thing 
without is repulsive, than on the warm, bright day of 
spring, when all nature seems to invite you out, and 
when the soul seems to disdain and rebel against the 
restraints of study ? You must make your calcula- 
tions to study many hours, and at many seasons when 
it is disagreeable — when the mind feels feeble, and 
the body is languid, or is even in pain. " Other, 
things may be seized on by might, or purchased with 
money ; but knowledge is to be gained only by 
study" 

So great is the advantage of being able to confine 
the attention, that men who have by some unexpected 
providence lost their sight, have felt willing to ex- 
change all that is beautiful, lovely, and cheering, which 
the eye drinks in, for the increased power over the 
attention which this loss gave them. The truly great 
President Dwight used to consider the loss of his 
eyes, a great blessing to him, inasmuch as it strength- 
ened the power of attention, and compelled him to 
think. You may point to men, and say, that " this 
and that distinguished man was not celebrated for 
scholarship, or any thing, unless for stupidity, in his 
younger days. He had no appointment in college — 
no rank as a scholar." Not unlikely. But be sure 
of one thing ; and that is, he never became distin- 
guished without, some time or otlier, passing through 
a severe course of dry, hard study. He might have 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 119 

Testimony of Wirt. How to make practical men. 

omitted this when young ; but, if so, the task was 
harder when he did undertake to perform it. But 
undertake it he must, and he did. 

" Pater ipse colendi 
Haud facilem esse viam voluit, primusque per artem 
Movit agros, curis acuens mortalia corda." 

The remarks of the lamented Wirt should be treas- 
ured up by every student. A few of the points upon 
which he touches are so much to my purpose, that I 
should do injustice to my reader not to quote them. 
" Take it for granted, that there is no excellence 
without great labor. No mere aspirations for emi- 
nence, however ardent, will do the business. Wish- 
ing, and sighing, and imagining, and dreaming of great- 
ness, will never make you great. If you would get 
to the mountain's top, on which the temple of fame 
stands, it will not do to stand still, looking and ad- 
miring, and wishing you were there. You must gird 
up your loins, and go to work with all the indomita- 
ble energy of Hannibal scaling the Alps. Laborious 
study and diligent observation of the world, are both 
indispensable to the attainment of eminence. By 
the former, you must make yourself master of all that 
is known of science and letters; by the latter, you 
must know man at large, and particularly the charac- 
ter and genius of your own countrymen. We cannot 
all be Franklins, it is true; but, by imitating his 



120 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Franklin's habits. How to think. 

mental habits and unwearied industry, we may reach 
an eminence we should never otherwise attain. Nor 
would he have been the Franklin he was, if he had 
permitted himself to be discouraged by the reflec- 
tion that we cannot all be Newtons. It is our busi- 
ness to make the most of our own talents and oppor- 
tunities ; and, instead of discouraging ourselves by 
comparisons and impossibilities, to believe all things 
imaginary possible, as, indeed, almost all things are, 
to a spirit bravely and firmly resolved. Franklin was 
a fine model o( di practical man, as contradistinguished 
from a visionary theorist, as men of genius are very 
apt to be. He was great in the greatest of all good 
qualities — sound, strong common sense. A mere book- 
worm is a miserable driveller ; and a mere genius, a 
thing of a gossamer, fit only for the winds to sport 
with. Direct your intellectual efforts principally to 
the cultivation of the strong, mascuHne qualities of the 
mind. Learn (I repeat it) to think — thinJc deeply, 
comprehensively, powerfully ; and learn the simple, 
nervous language which is appropriate to that kind of 
thinking. Read the legal and political arguments of 
Chief Justice Marshall, and those of Alexander Ham- 
ilton which are coming out. Read them, study them; 
and observe with what an omnipotent sweep of 
thought they range over the whole field of every sub- 
ject they take in hand, — and that with a scythe so 
ample and so keen, that not a straw is left standing 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 121 

Franklin's habits. Brougham's application. 

behind them. Brace yourself up to these great 
efforts. Strike for this giant character of mind, and 
leave prettiness and frivohty to triflers. It is perfect- 
ly consistent with these Herculean habits of thinking, 
to be a laborious student, and to know all that books can 
teach. You must never be satisfied with the surface 
of things ; probe them to the bottom, and let nothing 
go till you understand it as thoroughly as your powers 
will enable ypu. Seize the moment of excited curi- 
osity on any subject, to solve your doubts ; for, if you 
let it pass, the desire may never return, and j^ou may 
remain in ignorance. The habits which I have been 
recommending are not merely for college, but for life. 
Franklin's habits of constant and deep excogitation 
clung to him to his latest hour. Form these habits 
now. Look at Brougham, and see what a man can 
do if well armed and w^ell resolved. With a load of 
professional duties that would, of themselves, have 
been appalling to the most of our countrymen, he stood, 
nevertheless, at the head of his party in the house of 
commons, and, at the same time, set in motion and 
superintended various primary schools, and various 
periodical works, the most instructive and useful that 
have ever issued from the British press, for which he 
furnished, with his own pen, some of the most masterly 
contributions, and yet found time, not only to keep 
pace with the progress of the arts and sciences, but to 
keep at the head of those whose peculiar and exclu- 



122 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 



No quarrelling with studies. 



sive occupations these arts and sciences were. There 
is a model of industry and usefulness worthy of all 
your emulation." 

Under this head, I would add, that he who expects 
to discipline his mind by hard study, and to build up 
the mind by the habit of severe thinking, will not be 
the man to quarrel with what he studies. How often 
do we hear students complaining that they are put to 
studies which can be of no possible use to them in 
after life ! One is to be a merchant : why should he 
be drilled in Latin and Greek for years ? Another is 
to study medicine ; and why should he be poring over 
conic sections for months ? Multitudes complain that 
their instructers understand their business so poorly, 
that the very things for which they vvull never have 
any use, are forced upon them as studies ! Little do 
such complainers understand the object of an educa- 
tion. Keep it in mind, that the great object of study 
is to fit the mind to be an instrument of usefulness in 
life. You are now upon a dry, hard, uninteresting 
study. It contains not a single thing which you can 
ever use hereafter. Be it so. But if you can com- 
pel your mind to take hold and master that dry, hard, 
uninteresting study, you are fitting it to obey you 
through life, and at any time to do what you bid it 
do. Suppose your teachers should put you to study- 
ing magic — I do not pretend that it would be the best 
possible study — but if they should, take hold and 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 123 

The chancellor's horse. Geometry. 

Study it without quarrelling with it. There may be 
nothing in magic which can be of any practical use in 
life ; but perhaps it may do you good to know that 
there is nothing useful in it ; and, at any rate, the dis- 
cipline of mind acquired by w^ading through an unin- 
teresting study, is of immense value. It will be time 
enough to study such things as you propose to use, 
when you have your mind fitted to master them, and 
when they are needed. The chancellor of the state 
of New York was noticed, last summer, morning after 
morning, on a beautiful young horse, accompanying 
the rail-road cars, as far as he could go, before they 
left him by their superior speed. The horse was 
afraid and unruly, and somewhat dangerous at first, 
but grew more and more gentle. Why did he do 
this 2 Not for pleasure — not to aid him in the severe 
duties of his responsible station — not because he de- 
lighted to travel on that road — but to discipline his 
horse, and fit it for future service. 

You study geometry to-day. Perhaps your life 
may be so busy, and your time so occupied hereafter, 
that you may forget every proposition, and nothing 
but the name of the book may remain to you. But 
Plato, and every other man who has studied geome- 
try, will tell you that it will strengthen your mind, and 
enable it to think with precision. Geography and 
chronology are not now needed, but will soon be, in 
order to trace philosophy through all her branches, in 



124 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Philosophy. Perseverance. 

order to acquire a distinct and accurate idea of history, 
and to judge of the propriety of the allusions and com- 
parisons every where meeting you in the works of 
genius. Philosophy seems to open the mind, and to 
give it eyes, like the wings of the cherubim, in Eze- 
kiel's vision, within and without it. It subjects all na- 
ture to our command, and carries our conceptions up 
to the Creator. The mind is liberalized by every 
such study, and without these, it can never become 
really great or tasteful. 

While I would urge you to hard study and severe 
application, each being a sine qua non to success, you 
must, at the same time, feel sure that a steady, perse- 
vering course of study will certainly place you on an 
eminence. But press onward in a steady course of 
daily application. A,beautiful writer, with great vi- 
vacity and spirit, says, "The most usual way, among 
young men who have no resolution of their own, is, 
first to ask one friend's advice, and follow it for some 
time ; then to ask advice of another, and turn to that; 
so of a third, still unsteady, always changing. How- 
ever, be assured that every change of this nature is 
for the worse. People may tell you of your being 
unfit for some peculiar occupations in life ; but heed 
them not. Whatever employment you follow with 
perseverance and assiduity, will be found fit for you ; 
it will be your support in youth, and comfort in age. 
In learning the useful part of every profession, very 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 1^5 

The Icelander. Excuses. 

moderate abilities will suffice ; even if the mind be a 
little balanced with stupidity, it may, in this case, be 
useful. Great abilities have always been less service- 
able to the possessors than moderate ones. Life has 
been compared to a race ; but the allusion still im- 
proves, by observing that the most swift are ever the 
least manageable." 

Henderson gives an interesting account of his meet- 
ing with an Icelander, a poor man, in the common 
walks of life, who, to his surprise, could read Ger- 
man with great ease. On inquiring how he came to 
understand the German language, he replied, that he 
once met with a German book, and so great was his 
desire to know what it contained, that he could never 
rest till he had acquired the language so as to read it 
with confidence. 

We are in great danger of being willing to excuse 
ourselves from severe study, under the idea that our 
circumstances are not favorable. We are apt to fall 
in with the common notion that men are made by cir- 
cumstances — that they are called forth, and their 
characters are thus formed; and that almost every 
man would be great, and decided, and effective, were 
he only sufficiently hedged in and pressed by circum- 
stances. There can be no doubt but that men are 
naturally and practically indolent, and that they need 
powerful stimulants and a heavy pressure, to awaken 
their powers and call forth exertions. We know that 



126 ' THE STUDENTS MANUAL. 

Milton. Fuller. 

most men accomplish but very little. But would they 
under any circumstances ? Might not the tables be 
turned, and might we not with as great propriety say, 
and perhaps with equal truth, that men make circum- 
stances ? Was it the circumstances of the times, or 
the character of Hannibal, that enabled him, at the age 
of twenty-four, to guide the legions of Carthage over 
the everlasting, untrodden Alps, and thunder at the 
gates of Rome ? Look at John Milton. What was 
there in his circumstances to press him into greatness ? 
Shut out from the light of heaven by bhndness, most, 
in his situation, would have thought that they did well, 
could they have sung a few tunes, and earned their 
bread by making baskets. But Milton ! — he has 
thrown a glory over his age, and nation, and language, 
which can be impaired only by blotting the world out 
of existence. 

Look at Andrew Fuller ; — without education, with- 
out opportunities, without circumstances which can, 
in any way, be denominated favorable, like the birch 
rising up in the cleft of the rock, he stood far above 
the age and the generation in which he lived. 

But the cry is, " We have no favorable circumstances 
— no opportunities— no tools ; we can do nothing." 
Can do nothing! If we have any thing of the death- 
less Roman fire within — altapetens, — aliquid immen- 
sum, infinitumque — we have every needed help. 
Many a beautiful ship has sat like a swan upon the 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 127 

How a student is known. Testimony of Professor Stuart. 

dark-blue waters, which never had a tool, upon her 
sides, save the axe, the auger, and the knife. Hear 
what a master-spirit says on this point — a man whose 
example has often reproved me, and tlieusands like 
me. 

" If a man really loves study, has an eager attach- 
ment to tlie acquisition of knowledge, nothing but pe- 
cuhar sickness or misfortunes will prevent his being a 
student, and his possessing, in some good degree, the 
means of study. The fact is, that when men complain* 
of want of time for study, and want of means, they 
only show that, after all, they are either attached to 
some other object of pursuit, or have no part nor lot in 
the spirit of a student. They will applaud others, it 
may be, who do study, and look with a kind of won- 
der upon their acquisitions ; but, for themselves, they 
cannot spare the time nor expense necessary to make 
such acquisitions ; or they put it to the account of 
their humility, and bless themselves that they are 
not ambitious. In most of all these cases, however, 
either the love of the world or genuine laziness lies 
at the bottom. Had they more energy and decision 
of character, and did they redeem the precious mo- 
ments, which they now lose in laboriously doing noth- 
ing, or nothing to the purpose of the church, they 
might open all the treasures of the east and the west, 
and have them at their disposal. I might safely 
promise a good knowledge of Hebrew and Greek to 



128 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 



Necessity of reviewing. 

most men of this sort, if they would diligently improve 
the time that they now absolutely throw away, in the 
course of three or four years. While one man is de- 
liberating whether he had better study a language, 
another man has obtained it. Such is the difference 
between decisive, energetic action, and a timid, hesita- 
ting, indolent manner of pursuing literary acquisitions. 
And what is worst of all, in this temporizing class of 
students, is, that, if you reason with them, and convince 
them that they are pursuing a wrong course, that con- 
viction operates no longer than until the next parox- 
ysm of indolence, or of a worldly spirit, comes on. 
These siren charmers lull every energetic power of the 
mind to sleep. The mistaken man, who listens to 
their voice, finds himself, at the age of forty, just 
where he was at thirty. At fifty, his decline has al- 
ready begun. At sixty, he is universally regarded 
with indifference, which he usually repays with mis- 
anthropy. And if he has the misfortune to hve until 
he is seventy, every body is uneasy because he is not 
transferred to a better world." * 

6. Remember that the great secret of being suc- 
cessful and accurate as a student ^ next to perseverance, 

is, THE CONSTANT HABIT OF REVIEWING. 

I have already spoken of the memory. I would 
here say a word as to its use in your definite studies. 
Have you never tried to banish a thought, or a train of 

* Professor Stuart. 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 129 



How to commit grammar to memory. 



thought, from your memory, and could not? Have 
you never tried to recall some idea, or some train of 
thought, and the more you tried, the more you seem- 
ed to forget it ? The reason is, that the memory loves 
freedom, and disdains to be forced. The correct path, 
then, in which to tread, is to cultivate the memory as 
much as possible, without weakening it by restraint. 
It loves to try its powers spontaneously. Little chil- 
dren will frequently learn a long list of Latin or Greek 
words, without designing it, merely by hearing others 
repeat them. And I have known an ignorant Catho- 
lic, who could repeat the most of the Lord's Prayer, 
and a good part of the Missal, all in Latin, without 
knowing what it meant, simply by hearing it frequent- 
ly repeated. Those who have been most successful 
in fixing language in the memory, have uniformly done 
it by repeated readings of the thing to be retained. 
In committing grammar, for example, to memory, you 
should not attempt to confine the mind to it too long 
at a time, but bend the whole attention to it while you 
do study, and repeat the process often : repeat the 
lesson aloud, that it may come to the mind through 
the ear, as well as through the eyes, and then use the 
pen, and, laying aside the book, write it all out. In 
this process, you use the eyes, the ears, and you also 
give the mind an opportunity to dwell upon every 
letter, and syllable, and sound. This will be slow, at 
first, but it will effectually do the thing ; it will make 
9 



130 THE STUDENTS MANUAL, 

The jeweller's shop. 

you thorough, and soon give the courage of the war- 
horse. No new encounters will, in the least, appal 
you. The great difficulty in committing grammar, 
consists in the similarity of the w^ords and things that 
are brought together. Similarity confuses the mind. 
If you were*" to go into a jeweller's shop, and see a 
card containing twenty watches, though each had a 
different name, yet, the next day, you could not tell 
one from another. But suppose you go for five days 
in succession, and examine four watches each day. 
The jeweller carefully points out the difference. This 
is a common watch : he shows you its mechanism, and 
all its parts. That is a patent lever : he shows you 
how it differs from the former. The third is a lepine : 
its parts are very different still. The next is a chro- 
nometer, and differs widely firom any you have yet 
seen. He tells you the properties of each one, and 
compares them together. The second day, you re- 
view and recall all that he told you, and you fix the 
name, the character, and the properties of each in the 
memory. You then proceed to the second four. 
You go through the same process, every day review- 
ing what you learned on the preceding day. At the 
end of five days, you can repeat from memory, the 
name and powers of each watch, though, before the 
process, all you could remember was, that their num- 
ber was twenty, and that they stood in five different 
rows. Now, study the grammar with the same pre- 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 131 

Wyltenbach's testimony. How to review. 

cision, and in the same manner, and the memory will 
not complain that she is confused, and cannot retain 
what you ask her to keep. 

But what I have said of reviewing, pertains more 
especially to the lessons which you prepare for the 
recitation-room, and w.hich are to be reviewed and re- 
peated at your room. The indefatigable Wytten- 
bach — and few could speak more decidedly from ex- " 
perience — says, that this practice will have " an in- 
credible effect i?i assisting your progress ;'' but he 
adds, " it must be a real and thorough review ; that is, 
it must be again and again repeated. What I choose 
is this ; that every day the task of the preceding day 
should be reviewed ; at the end of every weelc, the 
task of the week ; at the end of every month, the 
studies of the month ; in addition to which this whole 
course should be gone over again and again during 
the vacation.^' Again ; this great scholar tells his pu- 
pils, " You will not fail to devote one hour, or part of 
an hour, at least, every day, to these studies, on the 
same plan which you have followed under me ; for 
there is no business, no avocation whatever, which will 
not permit a man who has an inclination, to give a 
little time every day to the studies of his youth.^^ I 
would add, that one quarter of an hour, every day, de- 
voted to reviewing, will not only keep all that a man 
has ever gone over, fresh in mind, but advance him in 
classical study. And no man may hope to become a 
thorough scholar, who does not first fix this habit upon 



132 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

How far carried. The fog. 

himself. It will be irksome at first, but only at first. 
** In reading and studying this work, [the Memorabilia 
of Xenophon,] I made it a rule never to begin a sec- 
tion without re-perusing the preceding one, nor a chap- 
ter, nor_book, without going over the preceding chap- 
ter and book a second time ; and finally, after having 
finished the work in that manner, I again read the 
whole in course. This was a labor of almost three 
months ; but such constant repetition proved most 
beneficial to me. The effect of repetition seemed 
to be, that when I proceeded from a section or a 
chapter which I had read twice, to a new one, I 
acquired an impulse which bore me along through all 
opposing obstacles ; like a vessel, — to use Cicero's com- 
parison in a similar case, — which, having once received 
an impulse from the oar, continues her course even 
after the mariners have suspended their operations to 
propel her." 

How very different this from the practice of too 
many ! That part of the path over which they have 
passed, is covered with a thick fog, and they can look 
back and see nothing but the fog. They look for- 
ward, and the atmosphere is, if possible, still more dim. 
Tlie road seems long, and they are constantly in doubt 
where they are. Any one can travel in a fog, but 
with no comfort or certainty at the time, and with 
no impression upon the memory to recall at some 
future time. 

*t isiioi for me to say that our colleges and schools 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 133 

Necessity illustrated, Quintilian. 

should insist on such reviews in the recitation-room. 
It would probably be impracticable ; but the youth 
ought to be encouraged and urged to do it at his 
room, again and again. We are told that there is a 
fine, and a more than human emotion produced by 
reading Demosthenes. But who feels it ? Read over 
the first and second Olynthiac, and do you feel it ? 
No ; nor can you, till you have reviewed every sen- 
tence, and paragraph, and section, again and again, and 
that, probably, to the twelfth time. Then, if you are 
faithful, you w^ill begin decidedly to feel it. You can- 
not but feel it. The influence of Plato's genius is 
thought to be distinctly felt through the whole world 
of letters. Does the student see any thing of this 
by dipping into Plato ? No ! nor can he ever 
do so, unless he train himself to the constant, inva- 
riable habit of reviewing every sentence, and every 
page, and that, too, many times. Try it for six months, 
and my poor reputation shall be staked on the result. 
Get, by any labor, your author's meaning and spirit. 
What Quintilian says of eloquence, is doubly appli- 
cable to this point : " Prima est eloquentiae virtus, per- 
spicuitas ; et quoquisque ingenio minus valet, hoc se 
magis attollere et dilatare conatur : ut statura breves 
in digitos eriguntur, et plura infirmi minantur." 

7. Be faithful in fulfilling your appointed ex- 
ercises. 

It has been said of the promising and lamented 



134 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Appointed exercises. President Porter's testimony. 

Professor Fisher, that, during his collegiate course, he 
never missed a recitatiorj of his class, and was never 
known to have his name handed in by the monitors. 
And all those men, who have ever become influential 
among us, almost without exception, began to be dis- 
tinguished for a conscientious discharge of all appointed 
exercises, while obtaining their education. You may 
feel unwell to-day ; you have over-eaten, or abused the 
body in some other way; and now you have but little 
courage to master your lesson. You are tempted not 
to try to learn it. But I beg of you not to lay it by. 
You will lose in self-respect ; you will have yielded to 
a temptation that will often assail you ; you will have 
lowered yourself in the estimation of others. No call 
of friends, no preparation for a society, no writing to 
friends, should ever turn you aside from getting that 
lesson which is shortly to be recited. The strong 
language of the late venerable President Porter ought 
to be hung up in the room of every student. It is 
the testimonv of one who was so careful and so 
judicious an observer of men and things, that he sel- 
dom made mistakes. " Regular, prescribed exercises 
have the first claim on your time, and should never be 
thrust aside by incidental things. It should be a point 
of conscience with every member of this seminary, 
for his own good, as well as in conformity with his 
sacred promise at matriculation, never to neglect these 
regular exercises, unless disabled by Providence. J 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 135 

Punctuality. Rest the mind. 

was detained by company^ is sometimes offered as 
a reason for such neglect, and it may be a good rea- 
son ; very rarely ; but in my own case as a student, 
from twelve years of age, through college, it never 
once was regarded by me as a reason for such neglect ; 
never once has it been so, in the nineteen years of my 
connection with this seminary. Take the catalogue 
of our seminary from the beginning, and mark the 
men, if you can, on that honored list, who, since they 
have left us, have been most distinguished for useful- 
ness as ministers and missionaries, and also the men, 
not a few, who have been elected presidents and pro- 
fessors in colleges and theological seminaries, and 
then remember, thaj the same men were distinguished 
ior punctuality , diud industry, and conscientious regard 
to order, while they were here.^' 

These remarks apply with as much force to every 
other student as to the student in theology. " Les 
hommes sont a peu pres tous faits de la meme 
maniere ; et ainsi ce qui nous a touche, les touchera 
aussi." 

8. Learn to rest the mind, by variety in your 
studies, rather than by entire cessation from study. 

Few can confine the mind down to severe thought, 
or to one study, long at a time, and therefore most, 
when they relax, throw the thoughts Idose, and do 
not try to save them. You are studying Homer, 
or algebra, for example. You apply yourself some 



136 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

How done. Illustrated* 

two or three hours at a time. Your body becomes 
weary, and the mind is jaded. You stop, and throw 
aside your books, and rest, perhaps, quite as long as you 
have been studying. Now, all this time is lost, or near- 
ly so. You forget that the mind is as much refreshed 
by variety as by idleness. When you lay aside your 
algebra, take up your Livy, or Tacitus, and you 
will be surprised to find that it is a refreshment, as 
you review your last lesson. Or make those minutes 
in your common-place book of what you last read ; 
or turn your thoughts, and ponder over the subject of 
your next composition. You may save a vast amount 
of time in this way. 

We wonder how our fathers, and how the students 
of Germany, at the present time, can study sixteen 
hours a day. They never could do it, were it not 
that they pursue one study till the mind reluctates ; 
they then turn to another, by which the mind is re- 
lieved, and at once becomes buoyant. This is the 
difference between him who loses no time, and him 
who loses very much. The men who accomplish 
so much in life, are those who practise on this plan. 
This will account for the fact, that the same man will 
not unfrequently hold several offices which require 
talents and efforts seemingly incompatible with each 
other, and jet promptly execute the duties of all. 
He is thus continually busy and continually resting. 

In this way the justly distinguished Dr. Good, long 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 137 

Example of Dr. Good. The old adag-a untrue. 

before he was forty years old, amid the incessant and 
anxious duties of a laborious profession, had gained 
prizes by writing essays ; had mastered at least eleven 
diiierent languages; had aided in making a Univer- 
sal Dictionary in twelve volumes ; had written his 
celebrated Study of Medicine ; and was constantly 
writing and translating poetry. His " Book of 
Nature " will give the reader an admiring conception 
of the variety and the accuracy of his attainments. 
Instead of being thrown into confusion by such a vari- 
ety and pressure of occupations, he carried them all 
forward simultaneously, and suffered none to be neg- 
lected, or but half executed. His practice was like 
that of the indefatigable, but somewhat eccentric Dr. 
Clarke, who said, " I have lived to know the great 
secret of human happiness is this, — never suffer your 
energies to stagnate. The old adage of ' too many 
irons in the fire,' conveys an abominable lie. You 
cannot have too many ; poker, tongs, and all — 
keep them all going." This habit of keeping the 
mind employed, will soon destroy the common habit 
of reverie. The soul will be too busy for reverie ; 
and then, if she gains nothing by change of occupa- 
tions, by way of acquisition, she gains the satisfaction 
that she is not wandering off on forbidden ground. 



CHAPTER IV. 



READING. 



The genius of Shakspeare has shed a glory around 
the name of Brutus, which the iron pen of history 
cannot do away. The historian and the poet are cer- 
tainly greatly at variance in regard to him : the latter 
has made him so amiable and exalted a character, 
that we feel unwilling to know the truth about him. 
I am not now to act as umpire between them ; but 
there is one spot where we see him in the same light, 
both in history and in poetry. It is this. The night 
before the celebrated battle of Pharsalia, which was 
to decide the fate of the known world, Brutus w^as in 
his tent reading, and making notes from his author 
with the pen ! 

The elder Pliny seldom sat down to eat a meal, 
without having some one read to him ; and he never 
travelled without having one or more books with him, 
and conveniences for making extracts or memoranda. 

The amiable Petrarch never ^elt happy a day, if, 
during it, he did not read or write, or do both. One 
of his friends, fearing it would injure his health, 
begged him to lend him the key of his library. Pe- 
trarch, without knowing the design, granted it. His 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. . 139 

Anecdote of Petrarch. Bacon's aphorism. 

friend locked it up, and forbade him to read any thing 
for ten days. Tlie poet consented with great reluc- 
tance. The first day seemed longer than a year ; the 
second produced a hard headache from morning till 
night; and on the morning of the third day, he was 
evidently in a fever. His friend, touched with his 
situation, restored the key, and with it his health and 
spirits. 

All distinguished men have been given to the habit 
of constant reading ; and it is utterly impossible to 
arrive at any tolerable degree of distinction without 
this habit. " Reading," says Bacon, " makes a/wZ? 
man ; conversation a ready man ; writing an exact 
man." That which he means by yitZ/ can never be 
attained, except by an extensive and thorough ac- 
quaintance with books. No genius, no power of in- 
venting and creating thoughts, can. ever supply a de- 
ficiency in this respect. The mightiest mind that was 
ever created, could, perhaps, here and there, strike out 
a road ; but who would wish it to spend itself in beating 
about to discover a path, and even to make it, when 
the united minds of the generations who have gone 
before us, have done this for him ? In order to have 
a judgment sound and correct, you must travel 
through the history cf other times, and be able to 
compare the present with the past. To have the 
mind vigorous, you must refresh it, and strengthen it, 
by a continued contact with the mighty dead who 



140 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Necessity of reading. Remark of Pres. Porter. Queen Caroline. 

have gone away, but left their imperishable thoughts 
behind them. We want to have the mind continually 
expanding, and creating new thoughts, or at least feed- 
ing itself upon manly thoughts. The food is to 
the blood, which circulates through your veins, what 
reading is to the mind ; and the mind that does not 
love to read, may despair of ever doing much in the 
world of mind w^hich it would affect. You can no 
more be the " full man " whom Bacon describes, 
without reading, than you can be vigorous and healthy 
without any new nourishment. It would be no more 
reasonable to suppose it, in the expressive and beau- 
tiful language of Porter, "than to suppose that the 
Mississippi might roll on hs flood of waters to the 
ocean, though all its tributary streams were cut off, 
and it were replenished only by the occasional drops 
from the clouds." Some will read works of the 
imagination, or w^hat is called the light literature of 
the day, while that which embraces solid thought is 
irksome. The Bishop of Winchester (Hoadley) 
said that he could never look into Butler's Analogy 
without having his head ache — a book which Queen 
Carohne told Mr. Sale, she read every day at break- 
fast. Young people are apt — and to this students 
are continually tempted — to read only for amuse- 
ment. Pope says, that, from fourteen to twenty, he 
read for amusement alone ; from twenty to twenty- 
seven, for improvement and instruction ; that in the 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 141 

Object of reading'. How to read to advantng-e. 

former period, he wanted only to JcnoWj and in the 
second, endeavored to judge. 

The object of reading may be divided into several 
branches. The student reads for relaxation from 
more severe studies ; he is thus refreshed, and his 
spirits are revived. He reads for facts in the history 
and experience of his species, as they lived and acted 
under different circumstances. From these facts he 
draws conclusions ; his views are enlarged, his judg- 
ment corrected, and the experience of former ages, 
and of all times, becomes his own. He reads, chiefly, 
probably, for information ; to store up knowledge for 
future use ; and he wishes to classify and arrange it, 
that it may be ready at his call. He reads for the 
sake of style, — to learn how a strong, nervous, or 
beautiful writer expresses himself. The spirit of a 
writer to whom the world has bowed in homage, and 
the dress in which the spirit stands arrayed, is the 
object at which he must anxiously look. 

It is obvious, then, that, in attaining any of these 
ends, except, perhaps, that of amusement, reading 
should he ])erformed very slowly and deliberately. 
You will usually, and, indeed, almost invariably, find 
that those who read a great multitude of books, 
have but little knowledge that is of any value. A 
large library has justly been denominated a learned 
luxury — not elegance — much less utility. A cele- 
brated French author was lauijhed at on account of 



142 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Must be deliberate. Seneca's remark. 

the poverty of his library. "Ah," replied he, "when 
I want a book, I make it!" Rapid readers generally 
are very desultory ; and a man may read much, and 
know but very little. " The helluo Ubrorum and the 
true scholar are two very different characters." One 
who has a deep insight into the nature of man, says 
that he never felt afraid to meet a man who has a 
large library. It is the man who has but few books, 
and.w^ho thinks much, whose mind is the best fur- 
nished for intellectual operations. It will not be pre- 
tended, however, that there are not many exceptions 
to this remark. But, with a student, in the morning 
of life, there are no exceptions. If he would im- 
prove by his reading, it must be very deliberate. 
Can a stomach receive any amount or kind of food, 
hastily thrown into it, and reduce it, and from it ex- 
tract nourishment for the body ? Not for any length 
of time. Neither can the mind any easier digest that 
which is rapidly brought before it. Seneca has the 
same idea in his own simple, beautiful language— 
" Distrahit animum librorum multitude : — Fastidientis 
stomachi multa degustare, quae ubi varia sunt et di- 
vcrsa, inquinant, non alunt." 

It is by no means certain that the ancients had not 
a great compensation for the fewness of their books, 
in the thoroughness with which they were compelled 
to study them. A book must all be copied with the 
pen, to be owned : and he who transcribed a book for 



'^In 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 143 

Ancients had bul few books. Scarcity of books formerly. 

the sake of owning it, would be likely to understand 
it. Before the art of printing, books were so scarce, 
that ambassadors were sent from France to Rome, to 
beg a copy of Cicero de Oratore, and Quintilian's In- 
stitutes, Sic, because a complete copy of these works 
was not to be found in all France. Albert, abbot of 
Gemblours, with incredible labor and expense, col- 
lected a library of one hundred and fifty volumes, in- 
cluding every thing ; and this was considered a won- 
der indeed. In 1 494, the library of the Bishop of 
Winchester contained parts of seventeen books on va- 
rious subjects ; and, on his borrowing a Bible from the 
convent of St. Swithin, he had to give a heavy bond, 
drawn up with great solemnity, that he would return 
it uninjured. If any one gave a book to a convent or 
a monastery, it conferred everlasting salvation upon 
him, and he offered it upon the altar of God. The 
convent of Rochester every year pronounced an ir- 
revocable sentence of damnation on him who should 
dare steal or conceal a Latin translation of Aristotle, 
or even obliterate a title. When a book was pur- 
chased, it was an affair of such consequence, that per- 
sons of distinction were called together as witnesses. 
Previous to the year 1300, the library of Oxford, 
England, consisted only of a few tracts, which were 
carefully locked up in a small chest, or else chained, 
lest they should escape ; and at the commencement 
of the 14th century, the royal library of France con- 



144 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Obstacles in the way of knowledge formerly. Excellence of the ancients. 

tained only four classics, with a few devotional works. 
So great was the privilege of owning a book, that one 
of their books on natural history contained a picture, 
representing the Deity as resting on the Sabbath, with 
a book in his hand, in the act of reading ! It was 
probably no better in earlier times. Knowledge was 
scattered to the four winds, and truth was hidden in a 
well. Lycurgus and Pythagoras were obliged to 
travel into Egypt, Persia, and India, in order to un- 
derstand the doctrine of the metempsychosis. Solon 
and Plato had to go to Egypt for what they knew. 
Herodotus and Strabo were obliged to travel to col- 
lect their history, and to construct their geography as 
they travelled. Few men pretended to own a libra- 
ry, and he was accounted truly favored who owned 
half a dozen volumes. And yet, with all this scarcity 
of books, there were in those days scholars who 
greatly surpassed us. We cannot write poetry like 
Homer, nor history like Thucydides. We have not 
the pen which Aristotle and Plato held, nor the elo- 
quence with which Demosthenes thrilled. They sur- 
passed us in painting and in sculpture. Their books 
were but few. But those were read, as Juvenal 
says, ten times — " decies repetita placebunt." Their 
own resources were tasked to the utmost, and he who 
could not draw from his own fountain, in vain sought 
for neighbors, from whose wells he could borrow. 
How very different with us ! We read without 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 145 

We read much. Cautions. Bad books. 

measure, and almost without profit. '^ Aliud enim est 
scire, aliud sapere. Sapiens est, qui didicit non onm- 
nia, sed ea qu^e ad veram felicitatenn pertinent, et 
iis quae didicit afficitur ac transfiguratus est." 

If, at the close of any given year, you will examine 
the register of the librarian of any of the literary so- 
cieties in college, you will find, almost without excep- 
tion, that those who have taken out most books, have 
accomplished least in preparing the mind for future 
usefulness. It is a good maxim, in regard to your 
reading — Non multa, sed multum. 

Beware of bad booJcs. Some men have been per- 
mitted to live and employ their powers in writing w^hat 
will continue to pollute and destroy for generations 
after they are gone. The world is flooded with such 
books. They are permitted to lie in our pathway as 
a part of our moral discipline. Under the moral orov- 
ernment of God, while in this state of probation, we 
are to be surrounded with temptations of every kind. 
And never does the spirit of darkness rejoice more,^ 
than when a gifted mind can prostitute itself, not 
merely to revel in sin itself, but to adorn and conceal 
a path which is full of holes, through which you may 
drop into the chambers of death. Books could be 
named, were it not that there is a possibility that even 
the information conveyed in naming them m-ight be 
perverted and used to obtain them, which, seemingly, 
could not be excelled by all the talents in hell, if the 
10 



146 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Their certain ruin. Guilt of selling such books. 

object were to pollute and to ruin. These are to be 
found every where. I do entreat my young- readers 
never to look at one — never to open one. They will 
leave a stain upon the soul which can never be re- 
moved. I have known these books secreted in the 
rooms of students, and lent from one to another. 
They are to be found too frequently. And if you 
have an enemy, whose soul you would visit with a 
heavy vengeance, and into whose heart you would 
place vipers which will live, and crawl, and torment 
him through life, and whose damnation you would 
seal up for the eternal world, you have only to place 
one of these destroyers in his hand. You have cer- 
tainly paved the way to the abodes of death ; and if 
he does not travel it with hasty strides, you have, at 
least, laid up food for many days of remorse. 

What shall be said of those who print and sell such 
works'to the young? — of those who go out on purpose 
to peddle them ? They are the most awful scourges 
with which a righteous God ever visited our world. 
The angel of death can sheath his sword, and stay his 
hand in the work of death. But these wretches! 
they dig graves so deep that they reach into 'hell. 
They blight the hopes of parents, and pour more than 
seven vials of wo upon the family whose affections 
are bound up in the son who is thus destroyed. 

In connection with these books, allow me to lift up 
a loud voice against those rovings of the imagination. 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 147 

Abuse of imagination. A delicate subject. Onanis scelus. 

by which the mind is at once enfeebled, and the heart 
and feelings debased and polluted. It is almost insep- 
arable from the habit of reverie : but, in this life, a 
heavier curse can hardly hang upon a young man than 
that of possessing a polluted imagination. The lepro- 
sy fills the whole soul. Time only increases it, and 
even the power of the gospel can seldom do more 
than restrain, without subduing, when the disease is 
once fixed. 

While I thus briefly allude to these wanderings of the 
imagination, by which the mind is debilitated, the soul 
polluted by a stain which tears cannot wash out, nor the 
deepest repentance fully do away, 1 cannot satisfy my 
conscience without going a step further, and saying 
what others have, to my certain knowledge, wished to 
say, and ought to say, but which no one has yet had the 
courage to say, in tones loud and distinct. May I 
entreat the young man who reads these pages not to 
pass the following paragraph witliout reading and pon- 
dering it. 1 have chosen to risk the charge of pedantry 
rather than not say what I could not say in English. 

Lux nulla, illl Dia, ultimce except:i, ut frequenter et 
assiJue, consuetudinem * * * effundendi m«?iM [Onanis 
SCELUS,] revelarepossit. Adolescent idos quamplurimos 
novi, in singulatos dies, in hac re, seipsos turpantts, et 
hoc, per annos multos. Incitamentum ad hoc cri7fi.en, 
cum pene omnibus, permagnum est. Casum multorum 
quos, de causa execrabile sol:, vidi occumbere prema^ 



148 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Crimen commune. Ethnicl. Dei ira. 

tur(B morti, gemui, — aliquos in aulis academicis, et 
nonnuUos citissime post digressmn e coUegio et ex 
aliquovis gradu exornatos. Plurimi hanc consuetudi- 
nem defendere conati sunt, quasi instinctu quodam et 
im/perio impulsi, et sic voluerunt Deum ipsum esse hu- 
jus stupri auctorem. " Hoc prcetexit nomine culpam." 
Turpissima simulatio ! Ethnici ipsi, luce natura 
ducti, cum verbis multis hanc culpam reprobaverunt, 
V. c. " Veneri servit — manus ! Hoc nihil esse pu" 
tas ? scelus est, mihi crede ; sed ingens, quantum vix 
animo concipis ipse tuo ; — parce solicitare manu, 
LcEvihus in pueris plus quam hcec — peccat.'^ 

Deus, quoad hoc crimen, mentem, ejus lucidissime 
indicavit. * Indignatio et ira Dei illis adsequentur, 
" Scimus vero judicium Dei esse secundum veritatem 
adversus eos qui talia agunt. Pittas autem hoc, O 
qui fads ea,fore ut tu effugias judicium DeiV* 

Memento fructus hujus consuetudinis esse — 

(1.) Memoriam esse maxime debilitatam ; 

(2.) Mentem esse valde dejectam at que stulte imr 
hecilem ; f 

* Gen. 38 : 9, 10. 1 Cor. 6:9. 2 Cor. 12 : 21 . Gal. 5 : 19. 
Eph. 5 : 3, 5. 

t See a thrilling and harrowing chapter in Rush on Diseases 
of the Mind. Physicians testify, that probably this is a greater 
source of derangement than all other causes. The -very in- 
telligent and respectable Superintendents of the Insane Hospitals 
at Worcester and at Hartford will say, not only that this is the 
cause of bringing many of their patients there, but an almost in- 
superable obstacle in the way of their recovery. 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 149 

Fructus. Byron. 

(3.) Semina letiferi morbid et mortis ijpscB in cor- 
pore sparsa ; * 

(4.) Omnia quce ad animam pertinent mere in 
pejus ; * 

(5.) Tribulationem a Deo, qui te aspicit in ocadto, 
certissime venturamfuisse. Oculus ejus, semper vigi- 
lajis, te spcctat. *' Nam omne opus Deus Ipse ad- 
ducet in judicium cum omni re occulta." " Nam 
quce, fiunt ah istis, turpe est vel dicere." Fuge, 
fuge, pro vita, pro anima. " Ohsta principiis." 
Hoc scelus vincere non poteris, nisi effugiendo. 
^uicunque in timore Dei versatur, te docehit, " hie 
vice ad sepulchrum," hie vice descendentes ad pene- 
tralia mortis. 

What shall be said of such works as those of Byron? 
May not a young man read those ? Can he not learn 
things from him which cannot be learned elsewhere ? 
I reply, Yes, just as you would learn, while treading 
in burning lava, what could not be learned elsewhere. 

* It is a'wfaliy certain, too, that It is very frequently the cause 
of sudden death. The apoplexy waits hard by, as God's execu- 
tioner, upon this sin. May not the pnle-faced youth, in feeble 
healtli, fn'quently imputing his disease to the dyspepsia, or 
soinethiiicr like it, tremble as he looks off the abyss on which he 
has ])l;iced himself? f do hope what 1 have said will lead many 
to fear and to beware. These remarks may be condemned by 
some ; but 1 shall have two soiuces of consolation, — first, that 1 
have dis barged a sacred duty ; and, secondly, that those who are 
offended axe those for whose special benefit these remarks are 
made. 



150 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Danger of such writers. They cannot live long. 

But would the knowledge thus obtained be worth the 
agony of the fire, and the scars which would remain 
through life? It is breathing the air which comes up 
from a heated furnace ; and though you may see a 
brightness and a glow in that furnacC) as you gaze into 
it, which is no where else to be found, yet you will 
feel the effects of what you breathe a long time. 
There are many bright spots in such writings ; but 
while one ray of pure light is thrown upon the soul, it 
must find its way through volumes of Egyptian dark- 
ness. There are beautiful pearls in the slimy bottom 
of the ocean, but they are found only here and there ; 
and would you feel it worth your while to dive after 
them, if there were many probabilities that you would 
stick and die in the mud in which they are imbedded, 
or, if not, that you certainly shorten and embitter hfe, 
in the process of diving and obtaining them ? 

Would you thank a man for fitting up your study, 
and adorning it with much that is beautiful, if, at the 
same time, he filled it with images and ghosts of the 
most disgusting and awful description, which were to 
abide there, and be continually dancing around you 
all your life ? Is he a benefactor to his species, who, 
here and there, throws out a beautiful thought, or a 
poetic image, but, as you stoop to pick it up, chains 
upon you a putrid carcass which you can never throw 
off? 1 believe a single page may be selected from 
Byron, which has done more hurt to the mind and 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 151 

Moore. Scott. Hume. Paine. Bulwer. Cooper. 

the heart of the young than all his writings have ever 
done good. But he will quickly pass from notice, and 
is doomed to be exiled from the libraries of all virtu- 
ous men. It is a blessing to the world, that what is pu- 
trid must soon pass away. The carcass hung in chains 
will be gazed at for a short time in horror ; but men 
will soon turn their eyes away, and remove even the 
gallows on which they swung. "But," say you, ^' has 
my author ever read Byron and Moore, Hume and 
Paine,. Scott, Bulwer and Cooper? " Yes, he has read 
them all, and with too much care. He knows every 
rock and every quicksand ; and he solemnly declares 
to you, that the only good which he is conscious of 
ever having received from them is, a deep impression 
that men who possess talents of such compass and 
power, and so perverted in their application, must 
meet the day of judgment under a responsibility which 
would be cheaply removed by the price of a world. 
Those who wrote to undermine or to crush the belief 
of the Christian — those who wrote to show how they 
could revel in passion, and pour out their living scorn 
upon their species — and those who wasted life and gi- 
gantic powers merely to amuse men — have come far 
short of answering the great end of existence on earth. 
Talents and influence were given for purposes widely 
different. But is it not necessary to read works of 
this kind, especially those whose design is only to 
amuse and awaken the interest of the reader ? There 



152 THE STUDENTS MANUAL. 

Effects of such writing's. Chalmers. Edmund Burke. 

IS no more necessity than there is to be acquainted 
with all the variety of dishes with which the palate 
may be pleased, and the body stimulated, and the 
stomach weakened. Were these the only books in the 
world, the case would be different. But who does not 
know that they who are given to reading works of fic- 
tion, leave a mass of most valuable and solid reading 
untouched and unknown ? When you have read and 
digested all that is really valuable, and which is com- 
prised in what describes the history of man in all 
lights in which he has actually been placed, then be- 
take yourself to works of imagination. But can you 
not, in works of fiction, have the powers of the imagi- 
nation enlarged, and the mind taught to soar ? Per- 
haps so. But the lectures of Chalmers on Astronomy 
will do this to a degree far beyond all that the pen of 
fiction can do. Will they not give you a command 
of words and of language which shall be full, and 
chaste, and strong ? Perhaps so. But if that is what 
you wish, read the works of Edmund Burke. There 
you will find language, gorgeous at times, but, for co* 
piousness and wealth, hardly to be equalled by any 
uninspired pen. He is a master on this subject ; and 
I hope no one, who intends to strike for a character 
for language or thoughts, strength or beauty, will 
ever be trying to clothe himself with the puissance of 
a novel, when he can boast the language of Burke as 
being his mother ton^iiue. 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 153 

Testimony ag^ainst novels. How know what to read. 

The question in regard to works of fiction usually 
has a definite relation to the writings of Walter Scott. 
There is such a magic thrown around him, that it 
cannot be but we are safe there. Is it so ? Because 
the magician can raise mightier spirits than other ma- 
gicians, and throw more of supernatural light about 
him than others, is he therefore the less to be feared 1 
No ; the very strength of the spell should warn you 
that there is danger in putting yourself in his power* 
While I have confessed that 1 have read him — read 
him entire — in order to show that 1 speak from expe- 
rience, 1 cannot but say, that it would give me the 
keenest pain to beheve that my example would be 
quoted, small as is its influence, after I am in the 
grave, without this solemn protest accompanying it. 

How shall you know what to reaJl — a very im- 
portant question ; for some books will positively injure, 
if they do not destroy you. Others will have no 
positive good effect; and from all, a tincture, hke that 
left upon the mind by the company you keep, will be 
left. Do not expect to read all, or even a small part 
of what comes out, and is recommended, too, in this 
age of books. You take up a book; and read a chap- 
ter. How shall you know whether it is worth your 
reading, without readintj it through ? In the same 
way that you would know whether a cask of wine was 
good. If you draw one glass, or two, and find them 
stale and unpleasant, do you need to drink off the 



154 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Standard authors. Read no poor books. 

whole cask, to decide that you do not want it ? "I 
have somewhat else to do, in the short day allotted me, 
than to read whatever any one may think it his duty 
to write. When I read, I wish to read to good pur- 
pose ; and there are some books, which contradict, on 
^ the very face of them, vvhat appear to me to be first 
/ principles. You surely will not say, * I am bound to 
read such books.' If a man tells me he has a very 
elaborate argument to prove that two and two make 
five, I have something else to do than to attend to his 
argument. If I find the fii-st mouthful of meat which 
I take from a fine-looking joint on my table is tainted, 
I need not eat through it to be convinced I ought 
to send it away." But there is a shorter route, and 
one every way still more safe ; and that is, to treat 
books as you do medicines ; have nothing to do with 
them till others have tried them, and can testify to 
their wortfi. There are always what are denomi- 
nated standard works at hand, and about which the|p 
can be neither doubt nor mistake. You cannot 
read every thing; and if you could, you would 
be none the wiser. The lumber would bury up and 
destroy all the valuable materials which you were 
laying up. Never feel any obligation to read a trifling 
author, or one whose thoughts are spread out like 
gold-leaf over a wide surface, quite through, in hopes 
of finding something better as you proceed. You 
will be disappointed. An author may reserve some 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 155 

How begin to read an author. 

of his happiest thoughts for the close of his book ; 
but he has great poverty of intellect if he makes you 
travel over a long, sandy road, without any spots that 
are refreshing. Leave such books — you will find 
better; and you are not bound to spend time and 
strength on a mere possibility. Will you stand till 
wearied, to hear a dull, impertinent coxcomb talk, 
when, by turning away, you can find instructive com- 
pany? 

How shall you hegin to read a hooJcl Always 
look into your dish and taste it, before you begin to 
eat. As you sit down, examine the title-page ; see 
who wrote the book — where he fives ; do you know 
any thing of the author ? where, and by whom pub- 
lished ? Do you know any thing of the general char- 
acter of the books published by this publisher ? Rec- 
ollect what you have heard about this book. Then 
read the preface, to see what kind of a bow the author 
makes, and what he thinks of himself and his work ; 
why he has the boldness to challenge the public to 
hear him. Then' turn to the contents, see what are 
the great divisions of his subject, and thus get a glance 
of his general plan. Then take a single chapter or 
section, and see how he has divided and filled that up. 
If, now, you wish to taste of the dish before further 
examination of the contents, then turn to the place 
where some important point is discussed, and where 
some valuable thought professes to be expanded or 



156 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 



How to know an author. How to read with the greatest profit. 

illustrated, and see how it is executed. If,- after some 
j few such trials, you should find your author obscure, 
/ dull, pedantic, or shallow, you need not longer fish in 
1 these waters. It will be hard to catch fish here, and, 
when caught, they will be too small for use. But if 
you find the author valuable, and worth your attention, 
then go back to the contents. Examine them chap- 
ter by chapter; then close the book, and see if you 
have the plan of the whole work distinctly and fully 
in your mind. Do not proceed till this is done. After 
you have this map all distinctly drawn in the mind, 
then get the first chapter vividly before you, so far as 
the contents will enable you to do it. Now proceed 
to read. At the close of each sentence, ask yourself, 
" Do I understand that ? Is it true, important, or to the 
point? Any thing valuable there which I ought to 
retain ? " At the close of each paragraph, ask the 
same questions. Leave no paragraph till you have 
the substance of it in your mi ad. Proceed in this 
manner through the chapter; and, at the close of the 
chapter, look back, and see what the author tried to 
accomplish by it, and what he really has accom- 
plished. As you proceed, if the book be your own, 
or if the owner will allow you to do it, mark with 
your pencil, in the margin, what, according to your 
view, is the character of each paragraph, or of this or 
that sentence. To illustrate what 1 mean, I will 
mention a few marks which I have found very useful 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 157 

Marg-'mal marks. 

to myself: these, or any thing similar, will answer the 
end to be attained. Perhaps the remark had better 
be made here, that you can never read to advantage 
unless you feel well, and the mind and spirits are 
buoyant. Otherwise, any author will be stupid. 
" No one will read with much advantage, who is not 
able, at pleasure, to evacuate his mind, and who 
brings not to his author an intellect defecated and 
pure ; neither turbid with care, nor agitated with 
pleasure." ^ 



Signifies, that this paragraph contains the main, 
or one of the main propositions to be proved 
or illustrated in this chapter; the staple, or one 
of the staples, on which the chain hangs. 



< 



This sentiment is true, and will bear expanding, 
and will open a field indefinite in extent. 



This, if carried out, would not stand the test of 
experience, and is therefore incorrect. 



> 

''I Doubtful as to sentiment. 
?! I Doubtful in point of fact. 



s 



Good, and facts will only strengthen the posi- 
tion. 



158 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Blarg-'inal marks. Read slow. 

(x| Bad ; facts will not uphold it. 



Irrelevant to the subject ; had better have been 
omitted. 



(p I Repetition ; the author is moving in a circle. 

^ I Not inserted in the right place. 

I In good taste. 

I In bad taste. 

Such marks may be increased at pleasure. I have 
found the above sufficient. These need not be adopt- 
ed, as each one can invent them for himself; but care 
should be taken always to make the same mark mean 
the same thing. But will not this method of reading 
be sloivl Yes, very stow, and very valuable. A 
single book read in this way, will be worth a score 
run over. It will compel you to think as well as read, 
to judge, to discriminate, to sift out the wheat from the 
chaff. It will make thought your own, and will so fix 
it in the mind, that it will probably be at your com- 
mand, at any future time. The first thing to be done, 
in order to make what you read your own, is to think 
as you read; think while you read; and think when 
you have closed the book. 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 159 

Reading should be talked over. Reviewiii"' books. 

It is also very important to talk over the subject 
upon which you are reading, with a friend. Be can- 
did enough to tell him that you have just been read- 
ing, so that he may know that you do not claim what 
you have, as your own. If the circle embrace several 
who really wish to fix what they read in the mind by 
conversation, so much the better. 

1^' Thought, too, delivered, is the more possessed : 
Teaching, we learn, and giving, we receive." 

" Quicquid didiceris id confestim doceas ; sic et tua 
firmare, et prodesse aliis potes. Ea doce quae noveris, 
eaque diversis horis, aliis atque aliis conveniet incul- 
care. Satis sit, si quispiam te audiat, interea exercita- 
tione miram rerum copiam tibi comparaveris." 

If your friend is reading the same book, or if one 
is reading to the other, the advantages of conversation 
will still be greatly increased. 

No small part of the time should be spent in re- 
viewing what you have read. The most eminent 
scholars think that one fourth of the time spent in 
reading should be thus spent. I believe the esti- 
mate is none too great. But is it not evident, that, if 
you read with the marginal marks made by the pencil 
in your hand, as described above, you can review the 
author, and your own judgment too, in a very short 
time ? One glance of the eye will show you what is 
the character of each paragraph. You will see jusi 



160 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Classification. 

where the fish is, and what he is, and at once you can 
put your hook in and take him out. 

There is another very important thing to be attend- 
ed to in reading. I mean classification. We need a 
power, which, in the present state of our existence, we 
do not possess, — a power of keeping alt that ever 
passes through our mind w^hich is worth keeping. 
Erasmus (de Rat. Stud.) dwells upon this point 
with great beauty and force. "Inter legendum aacto- 
rem non oscitanter observabis, si quod incidat insigne 
verbum, si quod argumentum, aut inventum acute, 
aut tortum apte, si qua sententia digna quag memoriae 
commendetur : isque locus erit apta notula quapiam in- 
signiendus." " Quanto pluris feceris exiguum pro- 
ventum, tanto ad altiora doctrinae vesticna es evasurus. 
Qui vilissimos quosque nummos admirantur, intuen- 
tur crebro, et servant accurate, ad summas saepe- 
numero divitias perveniunt; pari modo, si quis apta- 
vit sudorum metam bene scribere, discat mirari bene 
scripta, discat gaudere, si vel nomina duo conjunxerit 
venuste." 

We cannot write out, or copy, what we read. We 
can remember but a very small part of it. What shall 
we do ? For one, I have been in the habit of making 
an Ihdex Rerum of my reading. The book is so 
classified, that, in a single moment, 1 can refer to any 
thing which I have ever read, and tell where it is found, 
— the book and the page. It saves the labor of a com- 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 161 

Index Rerum. Newspapers and magazines. 

mon-place book, and yet preserves all that can be pre- 
served. About a year since, I published the plan of 
my own Index Rerum. And as I have not, from the 
first, had any pecuniary interest in it, I may say that 
the plan is highly approved. One large edition has 
been sold, and a second widely scattered. I find, also, 
since its publication, tliat the late venerable President 
Porter made himself such an index, on principles some- 
what similar, which he used all his life. This plan, 
pursued for a very few years, will give you an index 
of inestimable value. A single year will convince 
you that you cannot afford to lose its benefits.* 

What shall be said of the newspapers and maga- 
zines with which we are flooded ? Few things weaken 
the mind of the student more than light, miscellaneous 
reading. You find it the fashion to have read a world 
of reviews, magazines and papers. They are not 
written with the expectation of being remembered. 
And after you have spent hours over them, it is very 
doubtful whether you have done any thing more than 
crowd the mind with vague images and impressions, 
which decidedly weaken the memory. Every time 
you crowd into the memory what you do not ex- 

* I may respectfully refer to my Index Rerum for the plan and 
explanation of the work. While the kindest things haVe been 
said in regard to it, nothing to the contrary has ever been said 
by those who have used it. It, or something like it, should be the 
constant companion of every student. 
11 



162 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 



Reading with pen in the hand. Objects in readiii 



pect it to retain, you weaken its powers, and you lose 
your authority to command its services. The fewer 
of such things the student reads, the better. Perhaps 
you may, now and then, crowd sweet-meats into the 
stomach, which it neither can nor will digest ; but the 
fewer, the better. 

There is another very important point to be kept 
in mind; and that is, that, in reading, you should 
always have your pen by you, not merely to make a 
minute in your index, but to save the thoughts which 
are started in your own mind. Did you never notice, 
that, while reading, your own mind is so put into ope- 
ration, that it strikes out new and bold trains of think- 
ing, — trains that are worth preserving, and such as 
will be scattered to the winds, if not penned down at 
the moment of their creation? A wise man will be 
as careful to save that property which he himself 
makes, as that which he inherits. The student 
should be; for it will be of vastly more value to him. 

I cannot close this chapter without saying what 
seem to me to be distinctly the three great objects of 
reading. 

1. Reading forms your style. 

It is impossible to bring your mind, for any length 
. of time, under the influence of another mind, without 
having your language and modes of thinking influ- 
enced by that mind. Suppose you wish to write in 
an elevated, measured, dignified style, — could you 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 163 

Style. Edwards on the Will. 

easily avoid doing it, were you first to sit down a fort- 
night and read Johnson's works ? If you wish to 
write in a style pure, simple, Saxon, read John Bun- 
yan's Pilgrim's Progress through some half a dozen 
times, and you will write thus. Could you walk 
arm in arm with a man for days together, without 
catching his step and gait ? It is a law of nature that 
our minds insensibly imbibe a coloring from those 
with whom we associate, whether they are brought in 
contact by the living voice or on the written page. 
The insect that lives on the bark of the tree is no more 
certain to be of the color of that bark. Hence the 
importance of reading good authors, — those who, in all 
I'espects, make a good impression upon you. 'Books 
probably do more than all other- things to form the 
intellectual and moral habits of- the student. A sinde 
bad book will fi-equently give a tone and a bias to the 
mind, both as to thought and language, which will 
last during life. Hear the testimony of the late dis- 
tinguished President Porter. " If I may be allowed 
here to speak of my own experience, as a theological 
student, I would say that to Edwards on the Will,' 
which I read at three several times, before I entered 
the ministry, besides frequent reviews of it since, I 
am more indebted than to all other human produc- 
tions. The aid which it gave was to me inval- 
uably." 



164 • THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Illustration. _ Stocking the mind with knowledge. 

A lady, who now and then writes in rhyme, in- 
formed me that she first discovered that she possessed 
any of the rhyming powers, after having made a busi- 
ness, for some time, of copying the poetry of others. 
Owing to this insensible, undesigned and certain imi- 
tation, such writers as Addison are always recommend- 
ed to the young. I may mention the author from 
whom I just quoted, as an example of pure, clear and 
beautiful style. Be as careful, then, not to read 
vi^hat would vitiate your S|tyle, as you would not to 
keep company with those who would corrupt your 
manners. 

2. Reading stocks the mind with knowledge. 
^ This is the grand object of reading. We come into 
the world ignorant of every thing. The history, the 
experience of other men and other generations, can be 
ours only by reading. Human nature, in all ages, is 
the same. The laws of mind and of matter do not 
alter ; and thus we can, in a short life, know as much, 
and judge as accurately, by the use of books, as we 
could by living centuries, having no hght to guide us, 
except that of our own individual experience. He who 
would be compelled to go across the Atlantic to ob- 
tain a narration of facts which can be read in two 
hours, would need the years of the antediluvians, and 
then die a very ignorant man. " Without books," 
says the quaint but enthusiastic Bartholin, " Gf.od is 



f 

THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 165 

Bartholin's remark. Stimulating the mind. 

silent, justice dormant, physic [natural science] at a 
stand, philosophy lame, letters dumb, and all things 
involved in Cimmerian darkness." 

You must not only read, and make books the foun- 
tain from which you draw your knowledge, but you 
must expect to draw from this fountain through life. 
What you read to-day, will soon be gone — expended, 
or forgotten ; and the mind must be continually filled 
up with new streams of knowledge. Even the ocean 
would be dried up, were the streams to be cut off, 
which are constantly flowing into it. " How few read 
enough to stock their minds ! And the mind is no 
widow's cruise, which fills with knowledge as fast as 
we empty it. It is the * band of the diligent which 
maketh rich.' " 

3. Reading stimulates and puts your own mental 
energies into operation. 

If you were driven into a corner, and compelled to 
produce something as your own thoughts and opinions 
on an important point, at once, you would wish to 
stimulate your mind, and key it up to the highest 
point. How would you doit? You might reach it 
through the body, and, by stimulating that with wines or 
opium, might excite the mind. But, then, the results 
thus produced would be uncertain. They might be 
correct, and they might be like the ravings of the 
mind excited by disease. But, at any rate, the body 
and rnind would both suffer by this unnatural excite- 



166 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Safe stimulus. Pleasures of-reading. 

ment. The reaction is awfully great ; and, therefore, 
you may not do it. What can you do? I reply, that 
you can stimulate your mind at any time, when the 
body is healthful, by reading. No one can read the 
speeches of Burke, of Chatham, and of our own Pa- 
trick Henry, without being moved.. No matter what 
you are v/riting upon, or upon what you are to speak, 
you cannot read a good book without being stimu- 
lated. The dream of Clarence, and the speeches of 
Hamlet, in Shakspeare ; the speeches of men in the 
senate; the addresses of men from the pulpit; and, 
above all, the overwhelming torrent of clear thought, 
in burning language, which the masters of ancient 
times poured out, — will swell the bosom, rouse the soul, 
and call all your own powers into action. This eiFect 
of books will last through life ; and he w^ho knows how 
to read to advantage, will ever have something as 
appHcable to his mental powers, as electricity is to 
move the animal system. The man who has sat over 
the workings of a powerful mind, as exhibited on the 
written page, without being excited, moved, and 
made to feel that he can do something, and will do 
something, lias yet to learn one of the highest pleasures 
of the student's life, and is yet ignorant of what rivers 
of delight are flowing around him through all the 
journey of life. 

I close by repeating, Do not read too many books: 
read thoroughly what you undertake. Buy but few 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 167 

Buying books. 

books ; and never buy till you can pay for what you 
buy. You cannot more than half enjoy any thing 
for which you owe. Make all that you do read 
your own ; and you will soon be rich in intellectual 
wealth, and ever be making valuable additions to 
your stores. 



CHAPTER V, 

TIME. 

i 

There is no point, upon which I wish to touch, so 
difficuh as this ; and yet not one upon which so much 
good might be done, if the right things could be said, 
and said in a right way. It is easy enough to write 
prettily about the shortness and the fleetness of time, 
but not so easy to give specific rules how to improve it 
^s it flies ; but it is far easier to do this, than to confer 
the disposition, and create the determination, to use it 
to the best possible advantage. A.miser will frequent- 
ly become wealthy, — not because he has a great in- 
come, but because he saves with the utmost care, and 
spends with the greatest caution. This is a precept 
taught us in the very morning of life, but generally 
not learned till late in the evening. *' It is a prodigious 
thing to consider that, although, amongst all the talents 
which are committed to our stewardship, time, upon 
several accounts, is the most precious ; yet there is 
not any one of which the generality of men are more 
profuse and regardless. Nay, it is obvious to observe, 
that even those persons who are frugal and thrifty in 
every thing else, are yet extremely prodigal of their 
best revenue, time ; * of which,' as Seneca nobly says. 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 169 

Earl of Chalham's habits. Minute knowledge. 

* it is a virtue to be covetous.' It is amazins: to think 
how much time may be gained by proper economy.'* 

This is a hard lesson, but it must be learned. " Ad 
summa perveniet nemo, nisi tempore, quo nihil esse 
fugacius constat, prudenter utatur." 

The celebrated earl of Chatham performed an 
amount of business, even minute, which filled common 
improvers of time with utter astonishment. He knew, 
not merely the great outlines of public business, the 
policy and intrigues of foreign courts, but his eye 
was on every part of the British dominions ; and 
scarcely a man could move, without his knowledge 
of the man, and of his object. A friend one day 
called on him when prejiiier of England, and found 
him down on his hands and knees playing mar- 
bles with his little boy? and complaining bitterly that 
the rogue would not play fair, gaily adding, "that he 
must have been corrupted by the example of the 
French." The friend wished to mention a suspicious- 
looking stranger, who, for some time, had taken up 
lodgings in London. Was he a spy, or merely a pri- 
vate gentleman ? Pitt went to his drawer, and took 
out some scores of small portraits, and, holding up 
one which he had selected, asked, "' Is that the man ? " 
" Yes, the very person." " O ! I have had my eye 
on him from the moment he stepped on shore." 

All this was accomplished by a rigid observance of 



170 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 



Must feel the necessity of improving time. Johnson's reflections. 



time, never suffering a moment to pass without press- 
ing it into service. 

No one will try to improve his time, unless he first 
be impressed with the necessity. Remember that, 
at the very best calculation, we can have but a 
short time in wdiich to learn all,. and do all, that we 
accomplish in life. There is something melancholy 
in the following picture, drawn by the great hand of 
Johnson :— " When we have deducted all that is ab- 
sorbed in sleep ; all that is inevitably appropriated to 
the demands of nature, or irresistibly engrossed by 
the tyranny of custom ; all that passes in regulating 
the superficial decorations of life, or is given up in the 
reciprocations of civility to the disposal of others; all 
that is torn from us by the violence of disease, or sto- 
len imperceptibly away by lassitude and languor,— we 
shall find that part of our duration very small, of which 
we can truly call ourselves masters, or which we can 
spend wholly at our own choice'." At the beginning 
of each day, see what, and how much, you want to 
accomplish before you sleep, and then at once begin 
to execute your plans, suffering no time to run waste 
between planning, arid acting. At, the close of the 
day, be impartial and thorough in reviewing the day, 
and noting wherein you have failed. There is much 
to be learned from tie somewhat humorous account of 
the Indian Gymnosophists, in their plans for educating 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 171 

The Indian Gymnosophlsts. Apuleius, 

their disciples. The account is from Apuleius, a Pla- 
tonic philosopher of the second century. " When 
their dinner is ready, before it is served up, the masters 
inquire of every particular scholar how he has em- 
ployed his time since sun-rising: some of them an- 
swer, that, having been chosen as arbiters between 
two persons, they have composed their differences, 
and made them friends ; some, that they have been 
executing the orde^rs of their parents ; and others, that 
they have either found out something new, by their 
own application, or learned from the instructions of 
their fellows. But if there happens to be any one 
among them who cannot make it appear that he has 
employed the morning to advantage, he is immediately 
excluded from the company, and obliged, to work, 
while the rest are at dinner." 1 shall be excused, if 
I here introduce the dream of the amiable Bolton. If 
my young readers have met with it before, they will 
see that it will bear a review. 

" Dipping into Apuleius (or my afternoon's amuse- 
ment, the foregoing passage was the last 1 read, before 
I fell into a sli5rnber, which exhibited to me a vast 
concourse of the fashionable people at the court-end of 
the town, under the examination of a Gymnosophist, 
how they had passed their morning. He began with 
the men. 

" Many of them had only risen to dress — to visit — ^to 



172 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Dream. Imaginary examination. 

amuse themselves at the drawing-room, or coffee- 
house. 

" Some had, by riding or walking, been consulting 
that heahh at the beginning of the day, which the close 
of it would wholly pass in impairing. 

" Some, from the time they had got on their own 
clothes, had been engaged in seeing others put on 
theirs — in attending levees— in endeavoring to pror 
cure, by their importunity, what they had disqualified 
themselves for, by their idleness. 

" Some had been early out of their beds, but it was 
because they could not, from their ill luck, the pre- 
ceding evening, rest in them ; and when risen, as they 
had no spirits, they could not reconcile themselves to 
any sort of application. 

" Some had not had it in their power to do what was 
of much consequence : in the former part of the morn- 
ing, they wanted to speak with their tradesmen ; and in 
the latter, they could not be denied to their friends. 

" Others, truly, had been reading, but reading what 
could make them neither wiser nor better — what was 
not worth their remembei-ing, or what fhey should wish 
to forget. 

" It grieved me to hear so many of eminent rank, 
both in the sea and land service, giving an account of 
themselves that levelled them with the meanest under 
their command. 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 173 

Virtuosi. Encouraging artists. Buying books. 

" Several appeared with an air expressing the fullest 
conEdence that what they had to say for themselves 
would be to the philosopher's entire satisfaction. They 
had been employed as virtuosi should be, — had been 
exercising their skill in the liberal arts, and encourag- 
ing the artists. Medals, pictures, statues, had under- 
gone their examination, and been their purchase. 
They had been inquiring what the literati of France, 
Germany, and Italy, had, of late, published; and they 
had bought what suited their respective tastes. 

" When it appeared that the completing a Roman 
series had been tlieir concern who had never read over, 
in their own language, a Latin historian ; that they 
who grudged no expense for originals, knew them 
only by hearsay, from their worst copies ; that the 
very persons who had paid so much for the labor of 
Rysbrack, [an Italian landscape-painter,] upon Sir An- 
drews's judgment, would, if they had followed their 
own, have paid the same sum for that of Bird's ; that 
the book-buyers had not laid out their money on 
what they ever proposed to read, but on what they 
had heard commended, and what they wanted to fit a 
shelf, and fill a library that only served them for a 
breakfast-room ; — this class of men the sage pronoun- 
ced the idlest of all idle people, a^id doubly blamable, 
as wasting alike their time and their fortune. 

" The folly of one sex had so tired the philosopher, 
that he would suffer no account to be given of the 



174 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Thieves, First thief — sleep. 

Other. It was easy for him to guess how the females 
must have been employed, where such were the ex- 
amples in those they were to honor and obeyJ^ 

There are certain thieves who hang around a stu- 
dent, and who daily destroy much which might be 
of great value to hini. I will mention some of these, 
that you may know when you even hear their foot- 
steps ; for hear them you certainly will, and, if you 
have any thing of the desires of a student, will often 
cry out, " O fures, — latrones — O tyrannos crudelissi- 
mos quorum consilio mihi unquam periit Hora 1 " 

1. Sleep. 

Nothing is easier than to cultivate the habit of sleep 
so that the system demands, and will be deranged if 
the demand be denied, eight or ten hours out of the 
twenty-four. Physicians usually say that six hours 
are sufficient for all the purposes of health ; and, were 
the eyes to close the moment you reach the pillow, 
perhaps six hours would be sufficient for the bed. 
But suppose you allow seven, and rigidly adhere to 
that number as a rule. Would you not liave much 
more time than you now have ? Were you faitli fully to 
apply that time to your rtudies, which is now occupied 
by your bed, over and above the seven hours, would 
you not make great advances in ahnost any depart- 
ment of study? But the waste of time is not all. 
The whole system is prostrated by indulging the lux- 
ury of sleep ; and you are as really and as certainly 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 175 

Sleeping after dinner. Second thief — indolence. 

disqualified for severe study, after ten hours of sleep, 
as if you had over-loaded the stomach with food. 
The body and mind are both weakened by it. Take^ 
then, two hours from the sleep of most who call them- 
selves students, and add to it the value of two hours 
more, saved by increased vigor of mind, by the dimi- 
nution of sleep, and you have a decided gain. 
What shall be said of the practice of sleeping after 
dinner? A few words will suffice. If you wish for 
a dull, feverish feeling, low spirits, prostration of 
strength, full, aching head, and- a stomach that refuses 
to work for such a master, then Ke sure to eat hearty 
dinners, and sleep immediately after them. The call 
will be as regular as the dinner. But your fate, as a 
student, is sealed, if the practice be continued. 

2. Indolence. 

Indolence differs from sloth and idleness in the same 
way that the parent differs from the child. It consists 
in the indulgence of a heavy, inactive disposition, en- 
treating you to delay, till some future time, what ought 
to be done now. This will beset you by day and by 
night, unless you act from principle, and a high sense 
of moral responsibility. It can be resisted and over- 
come only by making your studies a duty, rather than 
a pleasure. They may, at times, be a pleasure, but 
should always be a duty. Dr. Fothergill, an eminent 
Quaker physician, says, "I enjeavor to follow my 
business, because it is my duty, Father than my mter- 



176 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Third thief— sloth. Madame de Genlis. 

est : the latter is inseparable from a just discharge of 
duty ; but I have ever looked at the profits in the last 
place." 

3. Sloth. 

This has frequently and justly been denominated 
the rust of the soul. The habit is easily acquired ; or, 
rather, it is a part of our very nature to be indolent. 
It grows fast by indulgence, and soon seizes upon the 
soul with the violence and strength of an armed man. 

The exhibitions of human nature, in the time of 
Seneca, were the same as at our day. " Quaedjim tem- 
pora eripiuntur nobis ; quasdam subducuntur : quse- 
dam effluunt ; turpissima tamen est jactura quae per 
negligentiam venit." 

The great mistake with us seems to be, that we feel 
that we cannot do any great thing, unless we have all 
our time to devote to that particular thing. " Jf I only 
had the time to go and sit down, day after day, for a 
number of days, or weeks, to examine that subject, 
and to write on that point, I could then do something." 
But, as it is, what can you do with such fragments as 
you gather, here and there, by sitting up late, or rob- 
bing your pillow at the_ dawn of day ? Can you do 
any thing with them ? No ; you must wait for leisure, 
and for some great change in your outw^ard circum- 
stances, before you can hope to accomplish much ! 
This is a great mistake. Madame de Genlis tells us, 
that, when a companion of the queen of France, it was 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 177 

* — • i — — - — 11 

Author's experience. Variety grateful to the mind. Erasmus. 

her duty to be at the table and waiting for her mistress 
just fifteen minutes before dinner. These fifteen 
minutes were saved at every dinner, and a volume or 
two was the result. No change, great and marked, 
in your general course, is necessary to make new and 
rich acquisitions ; only save every moment of time 
which you now throw away, and you will be able to 
do any thing. If I may speak from my own experi- 
ence, I can testify that very nearly all that I have 
ever attained, or done, out of the regular routine of 
my professional duties, has been by taking those odd 
moments which are so easily thrown away. There 
are little vacancies, in the most crowded periods of 
every man's duties, which are thrown away in resting 
from the great object of pursuit. But there is no way 
of resting the mind more effectual, than to have some- 
thing on hand to occupy it. The mind is not like a 
hand-organ, which wears as fast after you have shifted 
the key, and taken a new tune, as before. I have a 
friend, who is most laborious in his profession, and so 
active in his duties, that one would think he could 
never enter his study ; and yet, should he Hve and 
labor for the coming ten years as he has for the last five, 
he will die with a celebrity, as an author, that will not 
be doubtful. He accomplishes it all by improving the 
fragments of time. The well-known Erasmus spent 
the greater part of his life in wandering from coun- 
try to country, chasing promises of patronage, which 
12 



178 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Fourth thief — visitmg. 

were held out only to deceive. Yet, by an undevi- 
ating and vigilant improvement of those hours which 
will always remain amid the greatest activity, this poor 
scholar, compelled by poverty to solicit from the 
great, continued to write more valuable books than 
most men, in like circumstances, would have felt able 
to read. Johnson declares that he will forever stand 
in the first rank of literary heroes, having transmitted 
the most complete and perfect delineations of the 
manners of his a2:e. 

4. Visiiing. 

There can be no doubt but some of our time should 
be given to the cultivation of the social affections. But 
if the visiting be formal and ceremonious, it cannot 
well be too seldom, or too short. It is frequently 
said that the student should visit, and, in the society 
of the ladies, to relax his mind. 1 could never feel 
that this is any thing different from an insult to the 
sex. If you do visit with them, it should, in part, be, 
to be instructive and useful to them, and not to con- 
sider them in the mere light of " parlor ornaments," 
with the admiration of which it is very pleasant for 
you to relax your mind after severe study. 

And how many dinner or evening parties can the 
student attend weekly, and yet be a student ? Not 
any. He who would obtain knowledge, must have his 
body in the proper condition, his mind in his room, 
his attention all his own. You will find many stu- 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 179 



Fifth thief— reading- useless books. Novel-clubs. 

dents who visit much ; but they are not what we 
mean by good scholars. But how shall you ever be- 
come acquainted with society, and become famihar 
with good manners ? I answer, By your vacations. 
Nearly a quarter of your time is given up to vacations 
for this and similar purposes; and is not this suf- 
ficient ? 

5. Reading useless hooks. 

After what has been said on reading, perhaps you 
will feel impatient that it should be introduced again. 
But you are probably not aware how much time is 
consumed in many colleges and academies in reading 
such books. Clubs exist for the very purpose of 
purchasing and reading novels ; and circulating libra- 
ries are exhausted of their trash. A club of such 
worthies have been known to be all in their places in 
the chapel on the Sabbath, each with a novel under 
his cloak, which he most assiduously read during the 
services. I once heard it asserted in " great compa- 
ny," where the voices were too many and too loud to 
be resisted by my feeble remonstrance, that '• nine 
tenths of all the students in our colleges spend most of 
their time in reading novels." The assertion is not 
true ; but there is too much truth in it. A noble 
mind and a manly spirit can soon become so much 
interested in what will be of use in future life, as not 
to need or even to relish the morbid excitement of 
fiction. 



180 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Sixth thief — improper study. Whipping dogs. 

6. Improper method of study. 

May I not hope that what I have said under the 
chapter on Study, will enable you to understand what 
is meant by study, and also to form habits which will 
soon make it pleasant? Many students will begin 
studies which have no present use, and no immedi- 
ate relation to their prescribed course. They are 
useless or puerile. You may conquer them ; but 
cui bono ? A gentleman was riding through one of 
our large towns, when a dog came out and began to 
bark at the chaise. He beo;an to strike at him with 
his whip. This only increased the clamor of the dog, 
which brought some ten or a dozen more to his aid. 
It now became a serious business. All the doors 
were on jar, and the old women and children laughing 
at the contest. What was to be done ? Was a gen- 
tleman' to be put down so? No. He descends, ties 
his horse, applies his whip, and actually whips and 
drives away the yelping tribe. But as the conqueror 
ascended his chaise, his laurels began to wither, as an 
old lady cried after him, " Why, after all, you have 
only chased away a dog ! " Are there not many such 
battles fought by students who pursue studies that are 
out of the way, and which, if chased, are as honor- 
able as the conquest just mentioned ? These remarks 
do not apply to any thing in the course prescribed for 
the class. 

Music, painting, drawing, and the like, are appro- 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 181 

Seventh thief— wearied mind. Eighth thief— procrastination. 

priate, and very desirable, in their places; but how 
many have wasted their time in their pursuit, and 
thus not merely thrown away their opportunities for 
making solid attainments, but acquired wrong habits, 
which clung to them through life ! Leave your 
flute at home, and let it be one of the many things to 
cheer you during vacations, and one of the pleasures 
which you forego in term-time, to avoid temp- 
tations. 

7. We lose time hy pursuing a study when the 
mind is wearied. 

There is danger in mentioning this, lest you mis- 
take that restlessness, and that uneasiness of mind, so 
uniformly attending early discipline, for real weari- 
ness. But the mind, as well as the body, may be 
jaded ; and even a horse, in that condition, ought not 
to be spurred. Nil invita Minerva. Rehef and 
refreshment will be quickly found by turning to some 
other study. " Post lectione seu stylo defessus, nihil 
nitor repugnante natura ; sed exercitii genus aliud 
quaero, quo taedium varietas minuat." 

8. Having our studies press us in co7isequence of 
procrastination. 

It is impossible to have the mind free and unem- 
barrassed, if you suffer your studies to be driving you. 
If you defer your lesson to the very last moment in 
which you can possibly get it, you are not your own 



182 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Illustrated. Duke of Newcastle. 

master. A man may do a full day's work in the after- 
noon ; but if he puts it off till that time, he will be 
unhappy all the morning, over-laboring in the after- 
noon, and sick in the evening. He who does any 
thing in haste, no matter what his powers of mind may 
be, cannot do it well. If I have fifty miles to ride to- 
day, I can do it all after dinner ; but to undertake it 
would be unwise, and cruel to myself and my horse. 
There should be no loitering in the morning, because 
you can retrieve the loss in the evening. Punctuality 
in getting your lessons is of the very fi^-st importance, 
" It is like packing things in a box : a good packer will 
get in half as much more as a bad one. The calmness 
of mind which it produces is another advantage of 
punctuality. A disorderly man is always in a hurry : 
he has no time to speak with you, because he is going 
elsewhere ; and when he gets there, he -is too late for 
his business, or he must hurry away to another before 
he can finish it. It was a wise maxim of the Duke of 
Newcastle — * I do one thing at a time.' Punctuality 
gives weight to character. ' Such a man has made 
an appointment ; then I know he will keep it.' And 
this generates punctuality in you ; for, like other vir- 
tues, it propagates itself. Appointments, indeed, be- 
come debts: I owe you punctuality, if I have made 
an appointment with you, and have no right to throw 
away your time, if I do my own.''' 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 183 

Ninth thief — not completing our plans. Papers of a genius. 

9. We lose time by beginning plans and studies 
which we never complete. 

If the habit of entering upon what is not carried 
out and completed, be allowed in eariy life, the evil 
' increases as long as we live. A friend put into my 
hands a bundle of papers which belonged to one 
who was reputed a genius. " Were they worth pub- 
lishing ? " was the question. Honesty required the 
answer to be — " No." There was hardly a single thing 
completed. Here was a poem begun ; there a sonnet 
nearly completed ; there a calculation of an eclipse, 
about two thirds finished, with great accuracy and beau- 
ty ; there a composition commenced, or a letter about 
half finished — evidence sufficient that he possessed 
mind, and even genius ; but had he lived, with those 
habits, he could never have arrived at eminence 
Never begin any thing, without carrying it through, 
unless in so doing you must sacrifice some moral 
feeling or principle. He who desists, re infecta, 
not only loses all his labor, but allows himself in a 
vicious habit. The man who begins to build, but, 
for some reason or other, cannot finish, has been 
the object of ridicule for centuries. It is not essen- 
tial that you devote all your time to the point on 
which you wish to receive or bestow light; but 
do something every day, and in time the thing will 
be completed, however formidable it appeal's at the 
commencement. 



j(;84 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Order essential. Order must be perfect. Trifling' pursuits. 

Order is essential to a proper division and improve- 
ment of our time. Any one who has never made the 
trial, is an utter stranger to the calmness and pleasure 
with which the soul meets her daily duties, however 
various, or however arduous, if they return periodi- 
cally at the same hour. There will be a sufficiency 
;0f variety to afford relief, and also stimulus. But the 
order should be as complete as possible. A wheel 
that turns constantly may move a vast power, if every 
cog of the wheel be right ; but if there be one broken 
here, and another there, the whole machinery will 
suffer, and eventually break in pieces. So, if you try 
to have order in all your arrangements of study, you 
will suffer whenever it be broken in upon. The re- 
sult will be, that you will abandon it, and let the ship 
go as she pleases, and how she pleases, or you will 
seize the helm with an arm more resolute and nerved, 
and keep her true to her course. 

If you would make time valuable, beware of low 
and trifling pursuits. Do nothing of which you will 
ever be ashamed, either here or hereafter. Is it right 
that one who has your advantages and your respon- 
sibilities should be descending to tricks, or even to 
trifles ? What is the verdict of a world against Nero, 
who, when emperor of Rome, went up and down 
Greece, challenging the fiddlers to beat him ? iEro- 
pus, king of Macedonia, spent his time in making lan- 
terns, — a very useful article, but no business for a king. 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 185 

The hunting- patriarch. Dressing. 

Harcatius, king of Parthia, employed his time in 
catching moles, and was one of the best mole-catchers 
in the kingdom ; but does it tell to his credit ? Was 
Biantes, of Lydia, a useful man, or worthy ruler, 
though he was excellent at filing needles ? In the 
tenth century, there was a patriarch in the church, by 
the name of Theophylact, who had his time employ- 
ed in rearing horses. He had in his stable above 
two thousand hunting horses, fed upon the richest 
dates, grapes, and figs, steeped in wines. To say noth- 
ing about the waste of money, does not the voice of 
mankind execrate such an abuse of time, and talents, 
and station ? And yet, what is the difference between 
such a waste of hfe, and that which too many young 
men make, excepting that, in the former case, the 
responsibility may be greater? What "diseases of 
labor" truly ! 

By many, much time is wasted in dressing the per- 
son. You will not unfrequently find those who will 
spend from one hour to two and a half every morning 
in shaving and dressing. What do they accomplish in 
life ? They usually have smooth chins and look neat. 
As for accomplishing any thing good or great, they 
will never do either. Dress and neatness are highly 
commendable ; but we cannot have our wagons of 
mahogany, and highly varnished, if we expect to carry 
heavy loads over mountains with them. 

I shall speak of the necessity of exercise in another 



186 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Diversions. Life may be doubled. Locke's observations. 

place ; but, instead of that exercise which is to refresh 
and invigorate, how many spend much of their time 
in sports, and call them recreations ! We may have 
sauces to our dinner; but he who should try to live 
solely upon them, would find hiaiself shortly becom- 
ing lean. Taylor calls such diversions "garments 
made all of fringes," neither comfortable nor becom- 
ing. You are in danger from any recreation which 
you love much ; for men always give their time freely 
to what they love. 

He who can make two spires of grass grow where 
but one grew before, is said to be a benefactor to his 
species ; and I doubt not that he who would show 
you a method by which you could double or treble 
the length of your existence on earth, would be a 
benefactor also. It seems to me that this may be 
done. 

Locke observes " that we get the idea of time or 
duration, by reflecting on that train of ideas which suc- 
ceed one another in our minds ; ,that, for this reason, 
when we sleep soundly without dreaming, we have no 
perception of time, or the length of it, while we sleep ; 
and that the moment wherein we leave off to think, 
till the moment we begin to think again, seems to 
have no distance. And so, no doubt, it would be to a 
waking man, if it were possible for him to keep only 
one idea in his mind without variation, and the suc- 
cession of others ; and we see, that one who fixes his 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 187 

Who lives longest. Thought from the prpphet. 

thoughts very intently on one thing, so as to take but 
little notice of the succession of ideas that pass in his 
mind, while he is taken up with the earnest contenn- 
plation, lets slip out of his account a good part of that 
duration, and thinks the time shorter than it is." 
Hence, on this principle, you will notice that life 
always seems short, in looking back, to those who 
have been troubled with but few thoughts. Idiots, 
and sick people, frequently have weeks pass away, 
while to them they seem scarcely so many days. Of 
course, it follows, that he who has the m.ost thoughts 
pass through his mind, and the most rapid succession 
of distinct ideas, will take most notice of time, and, in 
the same space of time, will live the longest ; so that 
the curious remark of the philosopher Malebranchejs 
far from being improbable. The thought is beautiful, 
as well as curious. " It is possible that some creatures 
may think half an hour as long as we do a thousand 
years, or look upon that space of duration which we 
call a minute, as an hour, a week, a month, or a whole 
age." If Locke's theory be correct, it follows that 
time will seem long or short, just in proportion as our 
thoughts are quick or slow. Hence he who dies in 
the very morning of life, not unfrequently lives longer 
than another who falls at threescore and ten. 
Hence, too, the prediction of the prophet may be lite- 
rally true — "The child shall die an hundred years 
old." The Eastern nations have long, to all appear- 



V 



188 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Carious illustration. Turkish story. 

ance, had this thought. I will give the exquisite 
illustration drawn by the masterly pen of Addison. 

" In the Koran, it is said, that the angel Gabriel 
took Mahomet out of his bed one morning, to give him 
a sight of all things in the seven heavens, in paradise, 
and in hell, which the prophet took a distinct view of, 
and, after having held ninety thousand conferences with 
God, was brought back again to his bed. All this, 
says the Koran, was transacted in so small a space of 
time, that Mahomet, on his return, found his bed still 
warm, and took up an earthen pitcher which was 
thrown down at the very instant that the angel Gabri- 
el carried him away, before the water was all spilt ! 

" There is a very pretty story in the Turkish Tales, 
which relates to this passage of that famous impostor, 
and bears some affinity to the subject we are now 
upon. A sultan of Egypt, who was an infidel, used 
to laugh at this • circumstance in Mahomet's life, as 
what was altogether impossible and absurd ; but, con- 
versing one day with a great doctor in the law, who 
had the gift of working miracles, the doctor told him 
he would quickly convince him of the truth of this 
passage in the history of Mahomet, if he would con- 
sent to do what he would desire of him. Upon this, 
the suhan was directed to place himself by a huge 
tub of water, which he did accordingly ; and as he 
stood by the tub amidst a circle of his great men, the 
holy man bid him plunge his head into the water and 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 189 

The exiled king-. King returned. 

draw it up again. Tiie kbg accordingly thrust his 
head into the water, and at the same tim^ found him- 
self at the foot of a mountain on the seashore. The 
king immediately began to rage against his doctor for 
this piece of treachery and witchcraft ; but, at length, 
knowing it was in vain to be angry, he set himself to 
think on proper methods for getting a livelihood in 
this strange country. Accordingly, he applied himself 
to some people whom he saw at work in a neighbor- 
ing wood. Those people conducted him to a town that 
stood at a litde distance from the wood^ where, after 
some adventures, he married a woman of great beau- 
ty and fortune. He hved with this woman so long, 
that he had by her seven sons and seven daughters. 
He was afterwards reduced to great want, and forced 
to think of plying in the streets as a porter for his 
livelihood. One day, as he was walking alone by the 
sea side, being seized with many melancholy reflec- 
tions upon his former and his present state of life, 
which had raised a fit of devotion in him, he threw 
off his clothes, with a design to wash himself, accord- 
ing to the custom of the Mahometans, before he said 
his prayers. 

"After his first plunge into the sea, he no sooner rais- 
ed his head above the water, but he found himself 
standing by the side of the tub, with the great men of 
his court about him, and the holy man at his side. 
He immediately upbraided his teacher for having sent 



190 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

The moral. Who enjoys most. 

him on such a course of adventures, and hetrayed him 
into so long a state of misery and servitude, but was 
wonderfully surprised when he heard that the s^ate 
he talked of was only a dream and a delusion ; that 
he had not stirred from the place where he then stood ; 
that he had only dipped his head into the water, and 
immediately taken it out again. 

" The Mahometan doctor took this occasion of in- 
structing the sultan, that nothing was impossible with 
God : that he, with whom a thousand years are but as 
one day, can, if he pleases, make a single day, nay, a 
single moment, appear to any of his creatures as a 
thousand years." > , 

If life may thus be prolonged, why will it not hang 
heavy upon us, as it does with many now? The 
reason is this, that he who has a constant stream of 
useful and valuable thoughts passing through his mind, 
will enjoy each one of them, while he who has few 
thoughts, will have more passions in exercise ; and the 
soul soon palls upon being forced to attend only to the 
passions. " The latter is like the owner of a barren 
country, that fills his eye with the prospect of naked 
hills and plains, which produce nothing either profit- 
able or ornamental ; the other beholds a beautiful and 
spacious landscape, .divided into delightful gardens, 
green meadows, fruitful fields, and can scarce cast his 
eye on a single spot in his possessions, that is not cov- 
ered with some beautiful plant or flower " 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 191 

Save the fragments of time. What might be done. 

Some men, while young, rush into open, high-hand- 
ed sin, and plunge headlong into guilt, which quickly 
leads them to the slaughter-house, or which, if they 
survive, lays up food for future repentance and deep 
remorse. Bat this is not the history of the great 
majority of our educated men. But the sin which, of 
all others, most constantly lies at their door, is the 
waste of time while young, and, indeed, all the jour- 
ney of life. An evening is spent in chatting and 
smoking ; it seems a small space of time ; but when 
life closes, and we leave time to go into eternity, how 
many of these fragments Jie scattered and murdered 
by the way-side !' How deep will be our repentance 
when too late to remedy the defect, if not too late to 
seek forgiveness ! There is no one thins: of which 
students are so prodigal 3 as of their time. There are 
some exceptions — rari nantes ; but multitudes would 
be amazed at their conduct, had they been as prodigal 
of any thing else. You cannot read that page in 
Tacitus readily ; you never read any of the Latin 
poets except the • drudgery spent on Virgil and Hor- 
ace ; but have you not wasted moments and hours 
sufficient to have made you at home in Latin ? You 
cannot run that Greek verb through all the synopsis, 
and are blank at a page in Homer ; but might you 
not have made yourself an adept in Greek, and con- 
quered the dialects, and the idioms, had you wasted 
no time ? You neglect duties, public and private, and 



192 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Necessity of prayer. Evening review. Queen Elizabeth. 

satisfy conscience, that you have not time to fulfil 
them all. . But the wasted hours cry out against you. 
They should have been seized and stamped with what 
would have met the approbation of conscience and of 
God, as they winged their way to his throne. 

In this place I may add, that your time will pass 
neither smoothly nor profitably, unless you seek and 
receive the blessing of your Maker upon you daily. 1 
am not now speaking as a theologian, but as an observ- 
er of men ; and I can unhesitatingly assure you, that 
there is no one, and no ten things that will so much aid 
you to improve your time as the daily practice of prayer. 
" Bene precasse est bene studuisse," according toagreat 
master in study. In the morning, ask the blessing of 
God upon your studies, that he who created the mind, 
and has his finger upon it every moment, would keep 
it sound and clear, and instruct it ; that he give you 
a disposition to spend all your time in his fear, and to 
improve it for him. In the evening, recall the day, and 
the hours, and see wherein you have come short of 
duty, and what you have this day done, or omitted 
doing, which the conscience, quickened by prayer, 
tells you should have been done. Alas, how many 
have squan'dered this precious gift, and then, when 
they came to lie on the bed of death, have reproached 
themselves with a keenness of rebuke, which language 
was too poor to convey ! The lofty Queen Elizabeth, 
on her dying bed, cried out, " Millions of money for 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 193 



Dr. Young. 



one inch of time ! " How many such inches had she 
thrown away ! The piercing cry came too late. " O," 
said one, as he lay dying, " call back time again : if 
you can call back time again, then there may be hope 
for me ; but time is gone ! " 

"Where is that thrift, that avarice of time, 
(Blest avarice,) -which the thought of death inspires ? 
O time ! than gold more sacred ; more a load 
Than lead to fools ; and fools reputed wise. 
What moment granted man without account? 
What years are squandered, wisdom's debt unpaid ! 
Haste, haste ! he lies in wait, he's at the door, 
Insidious Death ! should his strong hand arrest, 
No composition sets the prisoner free. 
Eternity's inexorable chain 
Fast binds, and vengeance claims the full arrear. 
On all important time, through every age, 
Though much and warm the wise have urged, the man 
Is yet unborn who duly weighs an hour. 
Who murders time, he crushes in the birtli 
A power ethereal, only not odcred." 
13 



CHAPTER VI. 



CONVERSATION. 



" What a delightful evening we have spent ! " said 
a student to his companion, as they were returning 
home from a visit during vacation. 

" Yes, I do not know as I ever spent one more 
agreeably ; and yet I cannot tell exactly what it was 
that rendered it so agreeable. The circle all seemed 

CD 

to be happy, and parted so ; but, for myself, I was so 
taken up with the conversation of that stranger, that I 
took little notice of what the rest were doing." 

"That was precisely my own case. Without seem- 
mg to know it, he possesses uncommon powers of con- 



versation." 



And this was the whole secret of the pleasures of 
the evening — that there was one in the circle, who, by 
nature and education, was fitted to instruct and please 
by his conversation.. 

There are few things more neglected than the cul- 
tivation of what we denominate conversational powers; 
and yet few which can be more subservient to bestow- 
ing pleasure and advantage. The man who knows 
precisely how to converse, has an instrument in his 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 195 



Conversation the gift of our Creator. Power of persuasion. 



possession with which he can do great good, and which 
will make him welcome in all circles. 

Take notice as you are introduced to a stranger. 
In a short time, you find he is interesting. You are 
in the stage ; you hear him, and forget the time, and 
are surprised at the rapidity with which you approach 
the place at which you must part. What makes him 
so interesting ? It is his powers of conversation. 

The advantages of this mode of communicating 
ideas need not be dwelt upon here. It is the method 
devised by the infinite Creator for the happiness of 
man, in all circumstances. It is the most perfect way 
of giving and receiving instruction. It is simple, as 
are all his works. We may produce strong, dazzling 
lights, by chemical combinations ; but the pure light 
of heaven is the most perfect. We may tickle the 
appetite by artificial drinks, but the pure water which 
God has provided for man, in all circumstances, is the 
most perfect drink. Speech, between man and man, 
is the universal medium of transmitting thought, and 
it is, by far, the best that can be devised. We now 
wish to know how we may best cultivate and use 
this faculty. Every one feels the importance of this 
knowledge. If you have a friend whom. you wish to 
warn, or upon whose mind you wish to make a deep 
impression, you know the most perfect way of doing it, 
is with the tongue. You first think over his situation, 
his prospects and dangers; you think over all his 



196 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Use in obtaining information. 

temptations, what apologies can reasonably be offer- 
ed, and what he will probably offer for himself; you 
then think of the motives with which to impress him. 
You then go to him ; you try, by tones and voice, to 
convince him that you are his friend ; you tell him 
your fears in language chosen and tender, and then 
you pour out your heart upon him, just as you had 
planned beforehand. You are perfectly aware that 
you have used the best and most appropriate means 
in your power, when you have exhausted your pow- 
ers of persuasion in conversation. If you cannot reach 
his heart and conscience in this way, you despair of 
doing it. 

If you wish for information on a particular subject, 
and there is a book which has it all drawn out on 
paper, and there is a friend who perfectly understands 
it, why do you go to that friend and hear him con- 
verse, rather than to the book ? Because you know 
that the latter method is not the most interesting and 
easy way of obtaining information. You can ask light 
on particular points ; you can state your objections ; 
-J^ou can compare with what you already know; you 
can soon know all that your informer knows. Varilles 
has said that, " Of ten things which he knew, he had 
learned nine from conversation." 

Make it a matter of study, then, to understand this 
subject, and not merely try to free yourself from faults, 
but to make it an accomplishment, — a part of your 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 197 

Floating- thoughts . City inhabitants. 

education. There is scarcely any way by which you 
can gain a stronger hold upon the circles in which you 
may move, or in which you may do more good. In 
conversation all are free-booters, and may carry away 
and appropriate to themselves as much as they can; 
and there is a vast quantity of thought and informa- 
tion afloat upon the great mass of intelligent mind, 
which never has been, and never will be, committed 
to paper. He who is permitted to draw from this 
great fountain, can hardly fail of having thought pour- 
ed upon him sufficient to render him intelligent, even 
though he should never open a book. You will see 
this every day in our cities. There the mass of men 
are too busy and hurried to read. They do not read ; 
and yet, when you meet a man from the city, you ex- 
pect to find him an interesting and an intelligent man. 
If he has long resided there, you will hardly be disap- 
pointed. The reason is obvious : he is thrown where 
all this thought is floating from mind to mind ; where 
mind is constantly coming in contact with mind ; and 
he feels the influence. A light that is hardly seen 
when standing alone, will, when placed among others, 
not only give but receive light. 

This constant, direct contact of mind with mind, 
invariably tends to soften and refine the feelings ; so 
that, when you hear it said of a man, that he keeps 
the best of company, you have no doubt but he is a 
man of refinement and politeness. The language 



198 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Conversation refines the feelings 5 but a poor substitute for books. 

which he has been accustomed to use has, at least, 
the appearance of conveying refined thought and 
feehng, and we insensibly conform our feelings to the 
dress in which we clothe them. An actor who per- 
sonifies a king or a hero, and uses his language, fre- 
quently feels that he is what he represents ; and were 
he never to put off the habits and language which he 
represents for a few hours, he would soon use the lan- 
guage of kings as his own, and have his feelings cor- 
respond. There are two dangers to which people in 
cities, and to which those who are similarly situated, 
may be exposed : the one is, that of using the lan- 
guage of kindness and refinement till it becomes a 
habit, when they do not feel it, and thus make dupes 
of others, and soon make dupes of themselves. Any 
hypocrisy may be practised till it no longer seems a 
borrowed character. At any rate, there is danger 
that, when the forms are greatly studied, the heart, 
under those forms, is seldom exercised. The other 
danger is, that the information gathered from conver- 
sation alone, be incorrect, and yet be esteemed of good 
authority. No information thus acquired can be re- 
lied upon. Books are the only correct reporters of 
facts ; and even they will sometimes invent facts, and 
imagine history. A man who relies solely upon 
conversation and society for stocking his mind, will 
be a very ready man, a very inaccurate man, and, 
consequently, incapable of being an accurate judge. 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 199 

Student's advantages. First suggestion — talking upon trifles. 

He can amuse you — he can interest you — he can give 
you new views of things ; but you cannot rely upon 
the soundness of his judgment. 

The student has an immense advantage over all 
other classes of the community ; for he can unite the 
two most perfect and desirable methods of gaining 
information — ^the accuracy and profound thoughts 
which can be found only in books, and the general in- 
formation concerning men and things, which conver- 
sation and society will bestow. Consequently, under 
certain restrictions, it becomes as really his duty to 
improve by conversation as by books. But as con- 
versation is a kind of commerce, towards which every 
person ought to pay his share, you act against all 
honorable rules of commerce, if you are not so pre- 
pared as to furnish your quota. If you would draw 
out facts and information, and elicit mental effort from 
others, which may be useful to you, it is certainly 
your duty to cultivate your talents and powers, so that 
they may, in turn, derive the same benefit from your 
society. You act an ungenerous part, if this be not 
the case. 

Allow me to continue to be specific in my hints, as 
it is always true, that, when judicious advice is given, 
the more specific it is, the more valuable. 

1. Do not waste your time, and that, of the compa- 
ny, in talking upon trifles. 

The amount of. attention bestowed upon trifles and 



200 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Every circle may have profitable conversation. 

follies, frequently renders conversation so nauseous to 
an intelligent mind, that it is disgusted. The conse- 
quence is, that such a man withdraws from company, 
and loses all the advantages of society. He cannot 
bear to spend hours of precious time in hearing the 
narrow-minded dwell upon the merest trifles in the 
world. He has no taste for entering into them, and 
he sits silent till he takes a final leave. While I would 
not applaud a taste that is delicate and fastidious to 
a fault, and which could endure nothing short of the 
exquisite, I would, at the same time, earnestly request 
every trifler, in society, to inquire if he is aware that, 
by his flat and trivial conversation, he is driving every 
sensible man from the circle in which he moves. But 
the man of sense ought not to withdraw. He must 
have courage to turn the tide. You need not sit si- 
lent because the rest are talking trifles. In every cir- 
cle, you will find, at least, one who is able and will- 
ing to communicate instruction. Seek him out; ply 
him with interrogations, and be in earnest to obtain 
information which you need.. In this way, every one 
will be able to learn, if he chooses. If there are not 
two, at least, in the circle, who are engaged in profita- 
ble conversation, it is your fault, and you ought not 
to compfain that the company was dull or trifling. It 
is to be lamented, that even gifted minds and exalted 
talents are frequently of no other use, in company, 
than to give countenance to trifling, when they might 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 201 

Great minds. Robert Hall. 

and ought to be used to give a right direction to the 
conversation, and rightly influence the excited, inter- 
ested minds present. There should be a bearing to- 
wards usefulness which is systematic. The want of 
this is a great deficiency. Even Robert Hall failed 
here. "Often, indeed, has Mr. Hall lamented this 
defect : often, as we have been returning from a party, 
which he kept alive by the brillianc)'^ and variety of his 
observations, has he said, ' Ah, sir, I have again con- 
tributed to the loss of an evening, as to every thing 
truly valuable: go home with me, that we may spend, 
at least, (5he hour in a manner which becomes us.' '* 
A man given to severe study and thought, is in pe- 
culiar danger here ; for, when he goes into society, he 
drops all study, forgets the train of thought in which 
he had been engaged, and at once has his spirits, not 
elastic, merely, but even, at times, highly excited. 
Then the temptation is, to forget that he ought to use 
his knowledge and talents to instruct and enlighten 
that circle of friends ; and that, if he does not improve 
the opportunity, he throws all the weight of his char- 
acter into the vote to drive all valuable thoughts and 
conversation from the room. I do not mean that 
you are to strive to monopolize the conversation, 
to shine and show yourself, and your attainments. 
Far otherwise. But I mean that you should not 
waste your time, and the time of those who are kind 
enough to hear what you have to say, in saying things' 



203 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 



A common mis. tke. Second suggestion — severe speaking. 



which niight be sad and repeated to the end of time, 
and no human being would be either the wiser or the 
better. Do nothing \\hich has the appearance of su- 
periority ; but he who rehes upon his " small talk " 
to render him long useful a* agreeable in society, has 
much mistaken human nature. Tt may be pleasant and 
pretty ; but who would thank you *o invite him to dine 
frequently upon custards and ice-creams ? If you leave 
a company without being able to reflect that you are 
wiser, or have made somebody else wiser, than when 
you entered it, there is something wrong in the case. 

2. Beware of severe speaking in company. 

No matter whether the company be large or small, 
you may be sure that all you say against an absent 
person will reach him. You have done wrong, and 
an avenger will be found. I admire the warning 
which St. Austin is said to have had inscribed in the 
centre of his table at which he entertained his friends — 

" Quisquis amat dictis absentem rodere amicum, 
Hanc mensam indignam noverit esse sibi." 

There is an almost universal propensity in mankind 
to slander each other, or, at least, to throw out hints 
which detract from the good opinion which they sup- 
pose may be entertained of their fellows. The de- 
tractor cheats himself most egregiously, but never 
others. He tacitly believes that he is pushing this 
one, and thrusting that one, with the charitable pur- 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 203 

The ichneumon. Detractors. Notion of the Tartars. 

pose of keeping the unworthy out of the seat of those 
who merit the esteem of all. " I remember to have 
read in Diodorus Siculus an account of a very active 
little animal, which, I think, he calls the ichneumon, 
that makes it the whole business of his life to break 
the eggs of the crocodile, which he is always in 
search after. This instinct is the more remarkable, 
because the ichneumon never feeds upon the eggs he 
has broken, nor any other way finds his account in 
them. Were it not for the incessant labors of this 
industrious animal, Egypt, says the historian, would 
be overrun with crocodiles ; for the Egyptians are so 
far from destroying these pernicious creatures, that 
they worship them as gods." 

Do not those who may be denominated detractors 
of mankind, congratulate themselves that they are dis- 
interested, like this little animal, and are really acting 
the part of benefactors of mankind ? They probably 
deceive themselves so frequently ; but the deception 
is only upon themselves. But how do others view 
them ? The rest of the world know that, if you de- 
tract, it is for the same reason that the Tartars are 
eager to kill every man of extraordinary endowments 
and accomplishments, firmly believing that his talents, 
how great or high soever, and what station soever they 
qualified him to occupy, will, upon his death, become, 
as 9 matter of course, the property of the destroyer. 
Were this theory correct, it. would be an apology for 



204 THE STUDENT^S MANUAL. 

Cruelty of wit illustrated by the dying Socrates. 

those who indulge in severe remarks upon the absent ; 
for, in most cases, it would be their only hope of pos- 
sessing great excellencies of character. What you 
say in detraction will not merely reach the ear of the 
individual against whom it is said, but it will prejudice 
the circle against him. We love to be prejudiced 
against people ; and while you may say ten clever 
things of him which are forgotten, the two or three 
which you say against him, will be remembered. Nor 
is this all. Such remarks leave a sting in your own 
conscience. You cannot thus speak disparagingly of 
the absent, without giving conscience the right to call 
you to an account, and tell you, in language which 
cannot be misconstrued, you have done wrong, and 
not as you would be done by. 

Aristophanes was the enemy of Socrates : He slander- 
ed him and abused him, and even wrote a comedy to 
ridicule him, and especially his notions of the doctrine 
of the immortality of the soul. As Socrates was pres- 
ent to see, the comedy acted upon the stage, and was 
not at all moved, it was thought that he did not feel 
this dastardly treatment. But it has been remarked, 
by an acute observer, that he did feel it most deep- 
ly, though too wise to show it ; for, as he was taking 
the bowl of poison, and about to drink it off, as he was 
entertaining his frienus and strengthening his own 
mind by a conversation on the immortality of the soul, 
he remarked, that Lt did not believe the most comic 



THE Students manual. 205 

A wise remark. Curious example. 

genius could blame him for talking on such a subject 
at such an hour. He probably had his detractor, 
Aristophanes, in his mind, on making this remark. 

'' He that indulges himself in ridiculing the little 
imperfections and weaknesses of his friend, will, in 
time, find mankind united against him. The man who 
sees another ridiculed before him, though he may, for 
the present, concur in jhe general laugh, yet, in a cool 
hour, will consider the same trick might be played 
against himself; but, when there is no sense of this 
danger, the natural pride of human nature rises against 
him, who, by general censure, lays claim to general 
superiority." Unless you have had your attention 
particularly called to this subject, you are probably 
not aware how many of these light arrows are shot 
at those who are absent. 

An honest fellow was introduced into the most 
fashionable circle of a country village : and though he 
was neither learned nor brilliant, yet he passed oiF 
very well. But he had one incorrigible fault : he 
always staid so as to be the last person who left the 
room. At length, he was asked, categorically, why he 
always staid so long. He replied, with great good- 
nature and simplicity, that " as soon as a man was gone, 
they all began to talk against him ; and, consequently, 
he thought it always judicious to stay till none were 
left to slander him." 

The habit of flattering your friends and acquaint- 



S06 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Flattery. Its philosophy. 

ances is pernicious to your own character. It will in- 
jure yourself more than others. It is well understood 
among men, that he who is in the habit of flattering, 
expects to be repaid in the same coin, and that, too, 
with compound interest. This is a very different 
thing from bestowing that encouragement upon your 
friend in private which he needs for the purpose of call- 
ing forth praiseworthy efforts. Flattery is usually be- 
stowed in public — probably for the purpose of having 
witnesses, before whom your friend now stands com- 
mitted, to return what you are now advancing to him. 
But judicious encouragement will always be given in 
private. If you flatter others, they will feel bound to 
do so to you ; and they certainly will do it. They 
well know that there is no other way in which they can 
cancel the obligations which you have imposed upon 
them ; because no compensation but this will be satis- 
factory. Thus you hire others to aid you to become 
your own dupe, and over-estimate your excellencies, 
whatever they may be. For a very obvious reason, 
then, you will deny yourself the luxury of being flat- 
tered. And especially do not fish 'for such pearls. 
You cannot do it, in a single instance, without having 
the motive seen through. You may have been aston- 
ished m seeing young men greedily swallow praise, 
when they could not but know that he who was daub- 
ing was insincere. It used to be a matter of surprise 
to me, how it is that we love praise, even when we 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 207 

Dr. Johnson's keenness. Goldsmith's character of Garrick. 

know that we do not deserve it. Johnson, at a single 
plunge, has found the philosophy of the fact. " To 
be flattered," says he, " is grateful even when we 
know that our praises are not believed by those who 
pronounce them ; for they prove at least our power, 
and show that our favor is valued, since it is purchas- 
ed by the meanness of falsehood." The desire of 
the approbation of others, for their good opinion alone, 
is said to be the mark of a generous mind. I have 
no doubt it is so. Against this desire I am breathing 
no reproach. It is the character ascribed to Garrick 
by Goldsmith, against which I am warning you. 

" Of praise a mere glutton, he swallowed what came, 
And the puff of a dunce, he mistook it for fame ; 
Till, his relish grown callous almost to disease, 
Who peppered the highest was surest to please. 
But let us be candid, and speak out our mind : 
If dunces applauded, he paid them u\ kind." 

3. Never indulge in levity upon what is sacred. 

It is nearly impossible to treat any sacred subject 
with levity, in a mixed company, without greatly 
woundino^ the sensibilities of some one. It is no 
mark of strength of intellect, or of freedom from pre- 
judice, or of any good quality, to do it. It shows 
nothing but a heart that sins without excitem^t and 
without temptation. He who can speak lightly of 
God, his Maker, and his best Friend, or of any thing 
that pertains to him, will always be known to carry a 



208 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Third suggestion — ridicule nothing sacred. The voice of experience. 

heart that will easily yield to a temptation to treat an 
earthly friend in the same way. You may set it down 
as a rule to which there are no exceptions, that he 
who treats religion, or any of the ordinances of his 
God, with lightness and irreverence, carries a selfish 
heart, and is not fit to be your bosom friend. Levity 
of manner, or matter, in regard to sacred things, will 
ruin your character, or that of any other man. Hear 
the testimony of one who was " unquestionably one 
of the first preachers — perhaps the very first preacher 
—of his time." "I set out with levity in the pulpit. 
It was above two years before I could get the victory 
over it, though I strove under sharp piercings of con- 
science. My plan w^as wrong. I had bad counsellors. 
I thought preaching was only entering the pulpit, and 
letting off a sermon. I talked with a wise and pious 
man on the subject. 'There is nothing,' said he, ' like 
appealing to facts.' We sat down and named names. 
We found men in my habit disreputable. This first set 
my mind right. I saw such a man might sometimes 
succeed ; but I saw, at the same time, that whoever 
would succeed in his general interpretations of Scrip- 
ture, and would have his ministry that ' of a workman 
that needeth not to be ashamed,' must be a laborious 
man. What can be produced by men who refuse 
this labor ? — a few raw notions, harmless, perhaps, in 
themselves, but false as stated by them." 

I need hardly allude to the practice of profane 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 209 

Profane langxiag-e. Lord Chesterfield. The profeine bishop. 

language ; for I have no expectation that any one, 
who has so far forgotten what self-respect demands, — to 
say nothing about higher claims, — as to use such lan- 
guage, will read a book like this. Such are seldom 
seen in company as reputable as a book designed to 
do them good. But still, some may be exposed to the 
temptation, who never yet yielded to it. Lord Ches- 
terfield, who is universally quoted as a master in the 
school of politeness, declares that such language is 
never that of a gentleman. When you hear any one 
use profane language, you will not wrong him if you 
conclude, that this is only one of a nest of vipers 
which he carries in his heart ; and although this is the 
only one which now hisses, yet each, in his turn, is 
master of the poor wretch who is giving his life-blood 
to feed them. 

In France, men frequently hold both civil and eccle- 
siastical offices. An elector, who was also an arch- 
bishop, was one day very profane before a peasant. 
Seeing the man stare, he asked him at what he was 
so much amazed. 

" To hear an arch-bishop swear," was the reply. 

"I swear," said the elector," not as an arch-bishop, 
but as a prince." 

"But, my lord," said the peasant, "when the 
devil gets the prince, what will become of the arch- 
bishop ? " 

14 



210 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 



Beautiful satire. Fifth sug-g-estion — topics of conversation. 



"A Persian, humble servant of the sun, 
Who, though devout, yet bigotry had none, 
Hearing a lawyer, grave in his address, 
With adjurations every word impress. 
Supposed the man a bishop, or, at least, — 
God's name so much upon his lips, — a priest, 
Bowed, at the close, with all his graceful airs, 
And begged an interest in his frequent prayers." 

Every approach to any thing like profaneness ought, 
at once and forever, to be banished. If you wish to 
fit yourself for the dark world, it will be time enough 
to learn its language after you have prepared for it by 
more decent sins. I am happy to say, that an oath 
is now seldom heard among people who lay any 
claim to respectability, and that I have not heard one 
for years, except where I had evidence that it was stim- 
ulated, and was borne on breath tainted and poison- 
ed by ardent spirit. Politeness needs not embellish- 
ments which belong to spirits accursed; and truth 
and sincerity always despise and disdain such auxil- 
iaries. 

4. Be careful in introducing topics of conversation. 
There are some people, who move in a sphere so 
contracted, and the range of their thoughts is in so nar- 
row a circle, that you can anticipate what are to be 
the topics of convei-sation, what stories you must hear 
repeated, and where the circle will return into itself. 
If you allow yourself to have favorite topics, you will 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 211 

Not to use your last reading. Illustrated. 

insensibly and surely run into this habit. Nothing can 
be more tiresome and unwelcome than such a talker. 
The same round is to be passed over, the same com- 
pliments repeated, the same jests broached. To avoid 
the possibility of this, some writers will advise you to 
make use of your last reading in conversation ; and 
thus you will have topics and a store of information to 
communicate. The objections to making this a rule, 
in my mind, are great. It does not seem to me to be 
honest. Your hearer is led to suppose that you are 
now using information which you have some time or 
other acquired — that it is a part of your capital, and 
not that which you have just borrowed. Is it fair for 
a scholar, who has just laid down the writings of Aris- 
tophanes, to come into company and talk about " the 
Crown ; " how keen it was ; how Socrates winced under 
it ; and how much ground there was for the satire ? 
Perhaps I have never heard of " the Crown " before, 
nor have any of the company. Perhaps he had not, 
two days since. He may inform us of his discovery, 
and amuse and instruct us with the information ; but 
if he talks about it as if it were one among tlie thou- 
sand things which he knows, and thus palms it off 
upon us as if it were a part of his capital, he deceives 
us, and it is dishonorable to do so. 

Some will go out of their way to harp upon topics 
which they suppose particularly agreeable to you, and 
thus flatter you by talking upon what they suppose 



212 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

A contemptible method of flattery. Illustrated. 

you are particularly pleased with ; just as if they 
were to invite you to dine, and then load your plate 
with some odd food, of which they supposed you were 
peculiarly fond, though they and the rest of the 
company loathed it. It is worse than insulting you, 
because you have all the mortification of the insult, 
without the power of resenting it. If, for example, a 
man knows me to be a Calvinist in my religious opin- 
ions, and spends his breath, every time he meets me, 
in lauding John Calvin — in praising the Puritans — 
when I know that, in his heart, he despises both — I do 
not thank him for taking all this pains to tickle me. 
If he sincerely desires information on these, or any 
other subjects with which he supposes me to be ac- 
quainted, he does me a kindness by giving me the 
opportunity to communicate what I know ; but if the 
subject be dragged in, and that frequently, few things 
can be more nauseous. The reproof which was given 
to one who indulged in this practice was severe, but 
just. A man supposed his acquaintance particularly 
fond of conversino; about the characters drawn in 
Scripture, and took every opportunity to bring these 
upon the tapis. " I affirm," said he, on one of these 
occasions, *' that this Samson was the strongest man 
that ever lived, or ever will live." 

"It is not so," said he for whose special gratification 
the subject was introduced — " it is not so : you yourself 
are a stronger man than Samson." 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 213 

Conversation an intellectual feast. * 

" How can that be ? " 

" Why, you have just lugged him In, by head and 
shoulders ! " 

Conversation is an intellectual feast ; and it can- 
not be enjoyed if each one must ha.ve a particular dish 
by himself; and to suppose that you cannot eat the 
same dish that the rest do, is treating you unnanasome- 
ly. You do not wish to have a little table spread in 
the corner for yourself alone, but to enjoy the feast in 
common. Remember, then, that the treatment which 
would be disagreeable to you, will be equally unpleas- 
ant to others ; and be careful to avoid a practice very 
common, but which always gives pain. 

As a toj^c of conversation, you cannot do better 
than to introduce yourself as little as possible. We 
are all in danger of this ; but, probably, the danger dcr 
creases from youth to old age. " It is a hard and nice 
subject for a man to speak of himself," says Cowley ; 
" it grates upon his own heart to say any thing of dis- 
paragement, and the reader's ears, to hear any thing 
of praise from him." It is especially dangerous to 
speak of yourself, if your circumstances are such that 
you are, in any way, tempted to ask for aid. A beg- 
gar will be relieved, if his wants are real, and known. 
But if he takes pains to expose his sores, those who 
would otherwise befriend him, turn away in disgust. 
Say as little about yourself, your friends, your deeds, 
as possible; for if you say any thing, it is supposed to 



214 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

• Speak little of self. 

be done for the purpose of challenging admiration or 
pity. A good writer recommends his readers not to 
talk about themselves, unless they are of some con- 
siderable consequence in the world. But this rule is 
unsafe. For who is there that is not, in his own 
opinion, of consequence enough to be the subject of 
conversation ? 

If not exceedingly careful, you will be in danger of 
repeating old jests as if new, and, perhaps, of appropri- 
ating to yourself, as your own, what was said generations 
before you were born. You have heard, or have read, 
the hon mot : the circumstance of reading or hearing it 
has escaped your mind, while the jest remains. You 
repeat it, and will be mortified, at some future time, to 
find in print what, for years, you had supposed your own 
property, honestly acquired. It is better to pass for a 
man of plain, common sense, in ordinary conversation, 
than to attempt to be brilliant or facetious at an ex- 
pense which you cannot well bear for any length of 
time. Few can deal in this commodity without feeling 
their need of borrowing ; and he who is in the habit 
of borrowing, will soon cease to remember that what 
he freely uses, is not his own. 

While upon this subject, I may say that, if you are 
tempted to indulge in humor and wit, you are beset in 
a weak and dangerous spot. Wit, and the faculty of 
producing smart sayings, may be cultivated. They 
are so; and I have known a company thrown into 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 215. 

Danger of being witty. 

shouts of laughter by salhes and strokes which were 
taken to be impromptu, but which would have been 
welcomed with coolness, had it been known that they 
were studied and arranged in private. This must al- 
ways, more or less, be the case with smart sayings ; 
and the great talent displayed, is in passing them off 
as if they were the creations of the moment. There 
are two special dangers in the indulgence of wit : the 
one is, that it is impossible to flourish a tool so sharp 
without wounding others. Strive against it as much as 
you please, your best jokes, aad keenest arrows, will 
be spent upon men and upon living characters. This 
will cause enmities and heart-burnings. Enemies, and 
bitter enemies, he must have, who tries to be a wit. 
And when you hear of a man who " had rather lose a 
friend than a joke," you may be sure that he will soon 
cease to be troubled by the officiousness of friendship. 
Every man knows that he has peculiarities and weak- 
nesses of his own ; but they are a part of his nature ; 
and he cannot, and will not, love a man who wounds 
him through these. These weaknesses are ours; and, 
though we may feel ashamed of them, as we are of 
our " poor relations," yet we do not like to have them 
ridiculed. We repel the man who feels so conscious 
of superiority, that he may sport with the characters 
of others. He may excite the laugh, and he may be 
flattered for a while, but it must be among those 
whonni he has tacitly promised to spare. — The second 



216 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Example from Gil Bias. 

danger of trying to be a wit, is, that you injure your 
own mind. No one can be a wit without assiduously 
cultivating pecuhar and odd associations of ideas. The 
thoughts must run in channels unknown to common 
Liiads. A strange hght must invest every thing at 
which you look ; and the mind soon becomes habitu- 
ated to eccentric associations. The result will be, 
that the mind ceases to be a well-balanced instrument 
of acquiring or communicating information. And the 
man who sets out to be a wit, will probably succeed 
so far as to be second-rate, and useless for every thing 
besides. The character of a witling, as drawn by the 
pen of Gil Bias, is true to the life. "He is, more- 
over, the most self-conceited man in Spain, though he 
spent the first sixty years of his life in the grossest ig- 
norance ; but, in order to become learned^ he employ- 
ed a preceptor, who has taught him to spell in Latin 
and Greek. Besides, he has got an infinite number 
of good stories by heart, which he has repeated and 
vouched so often, that, at length, he actually believes 
them to be true. These he brings into conversation ; 
and one may say, tliat his wit shines at the expense of 
his memory.''^ It is important, also, to remember, that 
he who says a great many brilHant things, says a vast 
many that are weak and foolish ; for pearl-divers always 
find that the waters which yield the most sparkling 
pearls, yield also the most shells. The best that can 
be hoped for, is, that the few witty things that ar6 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 217 

How to become a wit. Avoid pedantry. 

said, may be retained and repeated, while the worth- 
less may be forgotten. 

''Silva," said one of the archest among them, "we 
shall make something of thee, my friend. I perceive 
thou hast a fund of genius, but dost not know how to 
use it to advantage. The fear of speaking nonsense 
hinders thee from talking at a venture; and yet, by 
this alone, a thousand people now-a-days acquire the 
reputation of wits. If thou hast a mind to shine, give 
rein to thy vivacity, and indifferently risk every 
thing that comes uppermost : thy blunders will pass for 
a noble boldness ; and if, after having uttered a, thou- 
sand impertinences, one witticism escapes thee, the 
silly things will be forgot, the lucky thought will be 
remembered, and the world will conceive a high 
opinion of thy merit. This is what every man must 
do who aspires to the reputation of a distinguished 
wit." 

You will be careful, also, in conversation, not to 
make any display of knowledge or superior learning. 
No company likes to confess that they are ignorant ; 
and when one makes a parade of his learning, it is a 
silent invitation for them to acknowledge his superior- 
ity, and to confess that all the rest are ignorant. No 
invitation could scarcely be more unpleasant. I once 
knew a student do his utmost to be popular in the so- 
cial circle, but without success. It was difficult to 
discover the reason ; but a single evening explained 



218 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Quoting Latin and Greek. 

the whole. He quoted Latin and talked in Greek, 
and took great delight in tracing things up to their 
sources : thus, for example, he took great pains to 
show the company that the term comedy had some- 
what lost its original meaning, for it was composed of 
jcwjXT], street, and w(5y), song, meaning a street-song, which 
they used to act in a cart in the streets of the city. 
This was all true, but the pedantry was insufferable. 
It is no evidence of learning, since a single hour spent 
over Webster's large Dictionary would produce learn- 
ing enough to torment a circle the whole evening. 
He who is really a scholar, will make but little noise 
about it. The half-educated physician, who is con- 
stantly afraid that you will suspect him of ignorance, 
is the man who uses the hard technicahties of the pro- 
fession, and turns even the precise terms of the phar- 
macopoeia into bombast. It is probably for this rea- 
son, also, that pedantry is so odious. If you meet a 
man who spouts Latin, and bores you with Greek, 
you may generally suppose that his learning is about 
as deep as is the courage of the impudent house-dog, 
who barks loudly whenever you pass his master's 
house. If you are among students alone, the case is 
altered ; but, in mixed companies, the cases are rare 
in which even a piin or a jest is welcomed, if it must 
come in an unknown tongue. 

In all your conversation, be careful to maintain pu- 
rity of thought. A\\ approaches towards what is in- 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 219 

Double entendres. Impurity of expression. Proper use of anecdotes. 

delicate, will be at once discountenanced by all good 
society. Indeed, you can find none who are pleased 
with it. The vilest person is displeased with double 
entendres, and the like, in company. The reason is 
obvious. None love to have so much disrespect 
shown them as must be, when you take it for granted 
that they will be pleased with such conversation. It 
is a downright insult to a man of pure mind and pure 
morals. And never have I known any thing but dis- 
approbation expressed, and felt, on occasions when 
things thus improper have been introduced, even by 
those whose hearts were known to be impure. Never 
allow any thing to drop from your lips which you 
would not be willing to have your sister or your moth- 
er hear you say. Your recitals of facts, anecdotes, 
and all that you say for the purpose of enlightening or 
amusing others, should be pure in language and pure 
m thought. 

How are anecdotes and stories to be used ? They 
are of great importance and value, when properly 
used, and worse than useless when employed improp- 
erly. You have known men, of all professions, who 
are forever relating anecdotes and telling stories. 
Their fund seems inexhaustible when you first become 
acquainted with them ; but, on further acquaintance, 
you will find the stock really limited, and that the 
same things are repeated and laughed at piany times 
every year. One is noted as "an old story-teller;" 



220 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Two cautions. 

another is remarkable for keeping the company in good 
humor, or in shouts of laughter, by the hour together. 
And yet these individuals are not, and cannot be, 
as a general thing, very highly respected. No one 
would esteem it an enviable point to gain, if he 
might gain the same distinction. And yet every one 
is in danger of becoming one of these " hoary buf- 
foons," if he indulges in stories and anecdotes. At 
the same time, stories and anecdotes are facts which 
illustrate important principles, and cannot well be dis- 
pensed with. How shall you avoid Scylla, and not 
fall upon Charybdis ? I answer, You may and ought 
to use stories and anecdotes. They are very impor- 
tant ; and you cannot interest, and instruct, and impress 
without them. You may make abundant use of them ; 
I had almost said, you cannot make too much. But 
there are two important cautions to be given here. 

1. That you use the fact just as it occurred. Do 
not add, nor take from it in the least, for the sake of 
embellishing or making it more striking and to the point. 
You belie history, if you add or diminish aught. Some 
men cannot repeat a fact in the shape of anecdote with- 
out having it so distorted and discolored, that you 
would hardly know it to be the same thing. The 
habit is bad ; for you will soon be unable, if it be al- 
lowed, to state an interesting fact as it was. 

2. The second caution is, do not tell stories, or re- 
peat anecdotes, for their sake, and to amuse by them. 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 221 

Cautions illustrated. 

Their use is, to illustrate what you are talking or 
writing about. When they are used otherwise than to 
illustrate, they are out of their place. Never com- 
mence a conversation, or pen a paragraph, for the sake 
of the anecdote which will be brought out by way of 
illustration. A guide-board is a very convenient thing 
as you travel a tedious and difficult road ; but, though 
every road ought to have them at its branches and 
corners, yet what would you say of the man who 
should lay out and build a road for the sake of its 
guide-boards ? He who is in the habit of investigating 
subjects by analogy, will be very likely to illustrate them 
in the way in which they are presented to his own mind. 
Let your comparisons, figures, and illustrations, all be 
natural. Were I to see a man building a house, and, 
all at once, as he wanted a stick of timber, easily and 
naturally take his axe and go out into the woods and 
cut it, and bring it, and put it in its place, my opinion 
of the man would be raised ; but if he evidently built 
the house .for the purpose of showing that he could do 
such things, he would fall, and that greatly, in the es- 
timation of all. 

In these remarks 1 hope I shall not be understood 
to advise that you be in the habit of tedious minute- 
ness in all your relations of facts and anecdotes. This 
is intolerable. It is like trying to eat some of our 
small fish — ^slow in process ; and when you have done, 
you remember the hones while you forget the meat. 



4 

222 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Envy to be avoided. Noble example. Cheerfulness. 

A man in baste would not thus dine, if he could well 
avoid it. 

Keep your conversation clear of envy ; — and to do 
it, the heart must be kept clear. I shall not stop to 
write a tirade against this crying sin. But I will point 
you to a noble example. Virgil and Horace were 
contemporaries — both poets — both panting after dis- 
tinction — both patronized by the same hand — ^both 
caressed by the same nation — and both living and la- 
boring for an immortality on earth ; and yet they ate 
at the same table, and, in all their race, were friends. 
Envy and jealousy never soured their dispositions, 
never marred their peace. Envy is one of the beset- 
ting sins of the student. He is sensitive, nervous, and 
longs for the approbation of men. He sees others, by 
some apparently fortuitous circumstances, prospered, 
caressed and honored, while he is forgotten and passed 
by. What is more natural than that he should feel 
envy, and should show it in words, in severe, perhaps 
unjust remarks ? Guard against this temptation. En- 
vy is a demon which invariably dances attendance on 
men of small minds; and, so far as it is shown, all 
understand it to be so. 

Be cheerful in all your conversation. It can be made 
a habit, and- will always render you agreeable. We 
have so many weaknesses, so many crosses, and so much 
that is dov/n-hill in hfe, that we love to meet a friend 
that is cheerful. The veriest cripple, and the sour- 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 223 

Mason's excellent rules. 

est of merij love to pause and forget themselves, while 
they listen to the prattle and the cheerful shouts of 
the group of children. The cultivation of cheerful 
tones, and a cheerful manner of conversation, will add 
to your own comfort, and also to that of all with whom 
you associate. The hares of the sensitive Cowper 
were his evening companions ; and he informs us that 
their cheerfulness and frolicsomeness beguiled his 
hours of sadness. 

The following are the rules, much abridged, which' 
the judicious Mason gives to the student, in regard to 
conversation. 

1. Choose your company for profit, just as you do 
your books. The best company and the best books 
are those which are the most improving and entertain- 
ing. If you can receive neither improvement nor en- 
tertainment from your company, furnish one or both 
for them. If you can neither receive nor bestow ben- 
efit, leave that company at once. 

2. Study the character of your company. If they 
are your superiors, ask them questions, and be an at- 
tentive hearer ; if your inferiors, do them good. 

3. When the conversation droops, revive it by in- 
troducing some topic so general that all can say some- 
thing upon it. Perhaps it will not be amiss to stock 
your mind, beforehand, wdth suitable topics. 

4. When any thing is s^id new, valuable, or in- 
structive, enter it in your memorandum-book. Keep 



224 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Rules. 

all that you can lay your hand on that is worth keep- 
ing ; but reject all trash. 

5. Never be a cipher in company. Try to please, 
and you will find something to say that will be accept- 
able. It is ill manners to be silent. What is trite, 
if said in an obliging manner, will be better received 
than entire silence ; and a common remark may often 
lead to something valuable. Break a dead silence, at 
any rate, and all will feel relieved and grateful to you. 

6. Join in no hurry and clamor. If a point is han- 
dled briskly, wait till you have seen its different sides, 
and have become master of it. Then you may speak 
to advantage. Never repeat a good thing in the same 
company twice. 

7. Remember that others see their foibles and mis- 
takes in a hght different from what you do ; therefore, 
be careful not to oppose or animadvert too freely upon 
them in company. 

8. If the company slander or are profane, reprove 
it in words, if that will do ; if not, by silence ; and if 
that fails, withdraw. 

9. Do not affect to shine in conversation, as if that 
were your peculiar excellency, and you were conscious 
of superior ability. 

10. Bear with much that seems impertinent. It 
may not appear so to all, and you may learn some- 
thing from it. 

11. Be free and easy, and try to make all the rest 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 225 

Temper to be preserved. Disputes improper in company, 

feel so. In this way, much valuable thought may be 
drawn out. 

To these I would add, never get out of temper in 
company. If you are ill treated, or affronted, that is 
not the place to notice it. If you are so unfortunate 
as to get into dispute with a loud, heated antagonist, 
keep cool — perfectly so. " It is cold steel that cuts," 
and you will soon have the best end of the argument. 
The sympathy and respect of the circle will always 
move towards him who is cool under provocation. 
'' If a man has a quarrelsome temper, let him alone. 
The world will soon find him employment. He will 
soon meet with some one stronger than himself, who 
will repay him better than you can. A man may fight 
duels all his fife, if he is disposed to quarrel." What 
is usually understood by dispute, i. e. something in 
which the feelings are strongly enlisted, and in which 
there is strife for victory, ought never to be admitted 
into company. The game is too rough. And discus- 
sion, when it approaches that point, should be dropped 
at once. 

I cannot close this Chapter without reminding my 
reader, that the power of communicating our thoughts 
and feelings by conversation, is one of the greatest 
blessings bestowed on man. It is a perpetual source 
of comfort, and may be an instrument of great useful 
ness. The tongue is an instrument, also, of vast mis 
chief. It is our chief engine for doing good or mis 
15 



226 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Responsibility of the power of conversation. Student's accountability. 

chief. The gift brings a vast responsibility upon us^ 
The emotions of the soul, when expressed in language, 
will always affect others, more or less. If they are 
rightly affected, good is done ; if improperly, evil is 
the result. You will never pass a day without hav- 
ing a heavy responsibility rest upon you for the use 
of this gift. Every word is heard by him who planted 
the ear; and, for every word, you are bound over to 
give an answer at the great day of accounts. The 
student, with a cultivated mind, with a fund of ready 
knowledge, with manners and habits that make him 
welcome wherever he goes, with an influence which 
cultivation always gives, — the student can do much 
for the good of man, the honor of his God, and for his 
own future peace, by the manner in which he uses his 
powers of conversation. His words, his tones, will 
pour delight into the soul of friendship ; they will form 
the character of the little prattler w^ho listens to him ; 
they will pave his way to high and glorious scenes of 
usefulness ; — or they will fall heavy on the ear of affec- 
tion, and will roll a deep night of sorrow back upon 
his own soul. Remember that every word you utter 
wings its way to the throne of God, and is to affect 
the condition of your soul forever. Once uttered, it 
can never be recalled ; and the impression which it 
makes, extends to the years beyond the existence of 
earth. 



CHAPTER VII. 

POLITENESS AND SUBORDINATION. 

The students of a certain literary institution were 
assembled in commons at tea, at the commence- 
ment of a new academical year. A new class were 
thus, for the first time, brought to eat together. Their 
advancement in life and in education was such, that 
each one ought to have been a gentleman. As they 
sat down, one says to his friend at his right, " We shall 
soon see who is who." Presently a large, brawny 
hand came reaching along up the table, pushing past 
two or three, and, seizing the brown loaf, in a moment 
had peeled it of all its crust, and had again retired 
with its booty to the owner. " Hold, there ! " cries 
one, " to say nothing about politeness, where is the 
justice of such a seizure ? " " Oh I I love the crust 
the best." " Very like ; and j^erhaps others may also 
have the same taste." Here the conversation ended. 
But that unfortunate cowp-de-main fixed an impression 
concerninsf the student which was never removed. He 
was at once marked as a man destitute of politeness, 
and justly, too. All believed that his heart was more 
to blame than his hand. 

If my readers have ever watched at the door of the 



228 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

First impressions. How a polite man is treated. 

stage-ofSce, as the load of wearied passengers came 
out, one by one, they are aware that we almost in- 
stinctively and almost invariably judge of men by their 
0rst appearance — their address. They will notice, 
too, as they enter a stage for a journey, the inquiring 
glance goes eagerly round the circle, and at once, un- 
hesitatingly, and almost intuitively, each one has made 
up his mind who are, and who are not, polite men in 
the company. In any company, a polite man will be 
selected as the one in whom all feel that they have a 
kind of friend and protector — one who will neither dis- 
regard their rights nor suffer others to do so. When 
among strangers, at the public table, the politest man 
is selected to carve and distribute to the company, be- 
cause all have confidence in the uprightness and good- 
ness of his heart. And such a man always carries, 
in his very manners, what is better than a letter of 
commendation. The letter may deceive, or it may 
be seen but by few, while his manners will be seen 
by all. As politeness will not only add to your per- 
sonal comfort, and the comfort of all among whom you 
move, but will also greatly add to your usefulness, I 
ftjel that no apology is necessary for introducing the 
subject here. Indeed, I should feel that the book was 
very deficient without it. 

Nations and communities differ as widely in respect 
to politeness as, perhaps, any one thing. The French 
are polite to a proverb ; but we, as a people, seem to 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 229 

National character. Two curious examples. 

be characterized as being a very impolite nation. I 
need not stop to vindicate our national character, even 
if it can be vindicated. But this is certain, that we 
can lay no claims to be considered in danger of being 
too polite. I have seen a gentleman in a large circle, 
in attempting to sit down, supposing a chair stood be- 
hind him, fall flat on his back. The company all 
laughed or tittered at his awkward situation, except- 
ing a French gentleman present, who ran to him, 
helped him up, hoped it had not hurt him, gave up 
his own chair, and at once entered into a lively con- 
versation, to make him forget the accident. The 
company all felt rebuked by the politeness of the 
Frenchman ; but 1 doubt whether, had the same 
accident recurred the next evening, they would not 
have repeated the same conduct. Politeness was 
a hahit with him ; but with the rest of us, it was not 
a habit. In the same walk in a city, I have inquired 
at an American store for a place which I wished to 
find, and received an answer that was hardly civil, and 
no direction that was of any use. On inquiring at a 
French store, a few rods distant, the polite owner 
came out, showed me the street, and even went with 
me till the house was in sight. Which of these was 
the polite man ? — and at which shop would I be likely 
to stop and make purchases in future ? Yet it was not 
this motive that induced the man to be polite. It 
\ was his habit. 



230 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Danger of students. Learned children. 

Perhaps no class of men are in greater danger of 
neglecting to cultivate politeness, at the present day, 
than students. I will suggest some of the causes of 
this danger. 

The habits of children are formed very differently, 
now, from what they used to be. Formerly, there 
was a distance — I will not say it might not have been 
too great — ^between the parent and the child. The 
child was taught to reverence his parents, and to feel 
thatjie must look up to them, through aD the years 
of childhood and youth. A child was not then 
brought forward and exhibited as a prodigy in geome- 
try, in languages, or in oratory. But now, we have 
mathematicians at four and five, deep proficients in lan- 
guages at seven, orators that can vie with Pitt at ten, 
and finished statesmen before the teens. The result 
is, that these learned children are brought forward, 
and, like the hot-bed plants, force themselves into 
notice even before the spring opens. The tokens of 
respect which used to be paid to age, and worth, and 
parental care, are all prostrated. The child is not to' 
be blamed ; but if, when he becomes a student, his 
manners are even tolerable, he is greatly to be com- 
mended. It is not now thought proper to enforce 
family-government in the old-fashioned way marked 
out by Solomon ; and thus you will find children in 
early life wiser than their parents in every thing where- 
m the will of the parties comes in contact. And he 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 231 

One danger. Danger to religious students. 

who, from bis childhood, has been permitted to show a 
want of respect and deference to his parents, will not, 
in manhood, be pohte to the rest of mankind. If the 
principles of a polite, deferential behavior be not plant- 
ed in early life, they will rarely become a part of a 
man's character. 

. Many students, and the very best too, were origi- 
nally from humble life, and unaccustomed to society. 
When they began to study, they were secluded from 
society, and confined to their books; and, not knowing 
the forms of politeness, nor its uses, they soon learned 
not merely to neglect, but to despise both. They thus 
commenced habits which will effectually prevent their 
ever becoming polite men. Mistaken in the notion, 
that no one can cultivate politeness unless he moves 
in a brilliant circle, they neglect their daily habits, till 
they are downs for life. 

Religious young men are even still more exposed 
to danger. They are looked upon as the promise and 
the hope of the church, and are treated with the ut- 
most kindness. They are the sons of the church of 
God, and all feel something of the partiality of par- 
ents towards them. They are in great danger, con- 
sequently, of being much more ready to receive at- 
tentions than to bestow them — to receive, or even 
exact deference, than to bestow it upon those whose 
years and character should at once make them forget 
themselves. There is an impertinence, a sort of 



233 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Effects of vacations upon the student's politeness. 

' smirking manner, about some young men, which is en- 
dured only because the kind hope is indulged, that 
experience will correct the evil, and some other hand 
will deal the rough blows necessary to bring them to 
their proper places ; just as the tender mother spares 
her child, in hopes that he will do better as he grows 
older ; by which she means, that she hopes others 
will bestow those corrections which he so richly de- 
serves, but which she cannot inflict. I most sincere- 
ly wish that young men of this class, who are thus 
exacting the attentions which old soldiers only de- 
serve, could hear even but a part of the severe re- 
marks which are made upon them the moment they 
have left the company. The evil of which I am 
speaking, and speaking, too, with the kindest of feel- 
ings, would be quickly remedied. 

It is frequently supposed, that the vacations of stu- 
dents will enable them to throw off the stiffness of 
their habits, and to become polite. This ought to be 
their effect. But if you will watch the progress of a 
student's life, you will find that there is danger of 
having a contrary habit formed by vacations. We 
will suppose you have studied closely and faithfully 
through the term, have passed the customary exami- 
nation at its close, and are now prepared to go home. 
You are weary, worn down, and almost sick. You 
reach home with a countenance pale, and eyes sunken. 
Your parents find that, for the last week or two, you 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 233 

Visiting' the ladies. 

have been drooping. Your brothers and sisters dance 
around you in pure joy. You are now to be a visitor 
for a short time, are to be nursed and revived, and 
sent back in good heakh, and in fine spirits. Every 
one in the family is to do all for you in his' power, 
to make your visit pleasant and cheering. The 
walks, the rides, the visits, every thing, even to the 
diet, is regulated with a regard to your happiness. 
What is the result ? You are happy, you are grati- 
fied ; and vacation is delightful ; but I ask you, are 
you not in danger, by these delightful attentions, of 
receiving all this as your due, and of expecting it all, 
without feeling a corresponding obligation to return 
kindnesses, and to make others as happy ? Are you 
not in danger of feeling that these kind attentions are 
something which are the right of the student, and, con- 
sequently, of expecting them from all men, and of 
feeling disappointed if you do not receive them ? Be- 
ware of cherishing the feeling, that you are not bound 
to bestow attentions and kindnesses, as well as to 
receive them. 

Some depend upon becoming polite men and gen- 
tlemen from the fact, that, during vacations, they visit 
much, and, especially, that they then associate much 
with the ladies. With all due respect to their influ- 
ence, I must be allowed to say, that every association 
of the student, connected with their society, is too ideal 
to do much towards forming habits of politeness. It 



S34 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Effects of radicalism upon politeness. New England students. 

is thought, that any thing which intoxicates for a season, 
is pernicious to regular habits of life. If the remark 
is ever true, it probably is in this case. 

The radical notions of the present day, so preva- 
lent in regard to almost every subject and department 
of life, with how much good soever they may be asso- 
ciated, have certainly a deadly influence upon habits 
of politeness. He w^ho believes mind and matter to 
be of equal worth, and that the great thing necessary, 
to recover a planet which has wandered from its orb, 
is to put it in a whirl, is not very likely to be the man 
who will acknowledge real worth, and pay deference 
to genuine merit, — much less to be an angel in kind- 
ness towards equals and inferiors. But few men are 
radical in theory ; but lest they should be thought too 
far removed from it, too many sacrifice their politeness 
as a peace-ofFering to this divinity. 

Perhaps students in New England are in special 
need of caution in regard to their manners. The 
very air we breathe is republican ; and nothing is cur- 
resnt among us but pure republicanism. I am proud 
to have it so ; and may there never be a breeze, which 
shall pass over the blue hills and the sweet valleys of 
New England, which shall not give breath to men of 
these principles. But, at the same time, while we 
cultivate iron sinews, high enterprise, and freedom of 
thought and feeling, there is no need of downright 
roughness of manners, or savage tones of speech. 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 235 

Southern manners. Professional men not polite. 

We justly admire the easy, graceful politeness of our 
southern brethren. They are always welcomed 
among us, and make all happy among whom they 
move. We may and ought to have more of their 
pleasing manners, without sacrificing any thing of the 
New England character, which is truly valuable. 
From their infancy, they exceed us, altogether, in 
reverence for their parents, deference to superiors, 
and urbanity towards their associates. 

Professional men are too frequently destitute of 
real politeness, and in very many cases wofully so. 
I shall try to account for this shortly. But, lest the 
positioh should be doubted, look at a few facts. The 
good people of New York city are in the habit of 
opening their houses every spring, to receive clergy- 
men who may wish to attend the anniversaries of the 
religious societies. A few years since, long and im- 
posing cautions were published in their papers, guard- 
ing the clergymen who might attend, against spit- 
ting on carpets, and other acts of impoliteness of a 
similar nature. Without asking whether such a pub- 
lic reproof was altogether delicate or not, it shows the 
light in which the profession is viewed by a city pop- 
ulation. The offices of lawyers and of physicians 
can seldom boast of any thing that looks towards re- 
finement, unless it be the occupant. And even at 
the capitol, at Washington, it is said that, when Con- 
gress adjourns, they leave the halls in a situation which 



236 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Illustrated. The philosophy of the fact. 

indicates that almost any thing has been there, rather 
than the most refined gentlemen of whom our land 
can boast. The manners of professional men, too, are 
frequently blunt, slovenly, and boorish. The remark is 
not to be confined to any one profession. And why is 
it so ? Why are not professional men among the most 
refined and polite in their manners ? I will tell you. 
Their profession is their character. Upon this they rely, 
and upon this wholly. It is not that they despise dress 
and politeness, but because they do not give them their 
real value. An advocate can manage a cause, and make 
a plea, so that the whole court will bow to his learning 
and powers. He relies upon this character, and neglects 
manners, which, it may be, are all that another man has 
for his support. That physician, whom you see walking 
the streets, would not be tolerated in refined society, with 
his present manners, were it not that he stands so high in 
his profession. And that clergyman, so eccentric, and 
so uncouth, even at table, would be intolerable, were it 
not that, in the pulpit, he can show a powerful, culti- 
vated intellect, and a warm heart. Is not this just as 
well as if professional men were more particular, and 
as if every one was a model of politeness ? I reply, 
no. Look a moment at the philosophy of the thing. 
Every one loves to gaze upon a beautiful picture, or a 
beautiful statue. You can gaze for the hundredth 
time, and, at each look, receive an emotion of pleasure. 
This is true of every man, whoever he may be. We 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 237 



Illustrated by a French lady. Politeness always receives attentions. 

all love to look at what is refined and beautiful ; and, 
when the thoughts recur to it, we dwell longer and 
more intently upon what is graceful and beautiful. 
The consequence is, that a man, with the same tal- 
ents and attainments, who is a refined and a polite man, 
is looked at and remembered with vastly more pleas- 
ure than his equal, who is awkward, uncouth, and 
impolite in his manners. The French lady who de- 
clared that she could not read her prayers with any 
comfort, except from a beautifully-printed and elegant- 
ly-bound Prayer-Book, based her remark, not upon 
fancy, but upon true philosophy. If, then, the phy- 
sician would be remembered with interest, and have 
his image recalled with pleasure by his feverish, suf- 
fering patient, let him be a polite, finished gentleman 
in all his appearance and demeanor. If the lawyer 
would have his skill and his eloquence remembered, 
let them be associated with manners refined and in- 
viting, and they will be the more often recalled, as 
they will be associated so intimately with his person. 
If the clergyman would have his instructions take deep 
hold on the affections of his people, and his visits at 
their houses hailed with warm greetings, let him cul- 
tivate manners that bring no associations connected 
with his person which are not decidedly pleasurable. 

Some trample on all the forms of politeness, for the 
purpose of challenging and receiving attentions, es- 
pecially in public places. But they greatly mistake 



238 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Consistent with independent feelings. Want of it no mark of genius. 

human nature. Who does not know that he receives, 
and welcomes, and waits upon a pohte man, at his own 
house, with much more cheerfulness and alacrity than 
he does one who has an opposite character ? If you 
would be waited upon and receive the attentions of 
others, by all means be a man of politeness yourself. 

Some feel that politeness is inconsistent with inde- 
pendent feeling. The reverse is true. He who can- 
not but half respect himself, and can place but half a 
confidence in himself, is the man to be jealous of 
others, and to demand of them by impudence what he 
fears they will not yield him without. " An envious 
and unsocial mind, too proud to give pleasure, and too 
sullen to receive it, always endeavors to hide its ma- 
lignity from the world and from itself, under the plain 
ness of simple honesty, or the dignity of haughty in- 
dependence." You may regard the convenience of 
others,* and do all that politeness requires, and your 
own independence will be actually strengthened by it. 

Others feel that it is the mark of genius, or of a 
great mind, to be slovenly in appearance and uncouth 
in manners. If this be a sure index, the world is cer- 
tainly in no danger of suffering for the want of genius 
and talents. A man may be great and influential 
in spite of his manners ; and so can the elephant do 
wonders with his trunk. The most refined lady can- 
not thread her needle quicker than he can ; but would 
she be improved by exchanging her hands for his 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 231> 

Clement XIV. Hints. Good humor necessary. 

trunk? If genius requires such manners, the Graces 
should have been hawkers of fish in the streets, and 
Genius himself a canal-digger. 

No station, rank, or talents, can ever excuse a man 
for neglecting the civilities due from man to man. 
When Clement XIV ascended the papal chair, the 
ambassadors of the several states represented at his 
court, waited on his holiness with their congratula- 
tions. As they were introduced, and severally bowed, 
he also bowed, to return the compliment. On this the 
master of ceremonies told his holiness that he should 
not have returned their salute. " O, I beg your par- 
don," said he; "I have not been pope long enough to 
forget good manners." 

The following hints are suggested as worthy of your 
consideration : — 

1 . That good humor is essential to politeness. 

Perhaps you will think I should have used the term 
good nature. But that seems to be usually confined 
to a negative character. By good humor I mean " the 
habit of being easily pleased." The poet has beauti- 
fully said, that the art of love ought, on Saturday, to 
sup at the house of the art of pleasing ; that is, if I 
rightly understand him, the art of pleasing comes next 
to that of loving. 

" Au nom du Pinde et de Cythere 
Gentil Bernard est averti, 
Que Part d'aimer doit samedi 
Venir souper chez I'art de plaire." 



240 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Kind feelings necessary. 

Addison has beautifully illustrated this trait of char- 
acter in his somewhat whimsical description of his 
walk with his friend Will Honeycomb. It seems that 
Will had picked up a pebble, which, on account of its 
shape, he determined to present a friend of his who 
was gathering such valuable articles. In the mean 
time, he discovered, by the looks of his friend, that he 
wished to know the time of day. Pulling out his 
watch, he " told me we had seven minutes, good. We 
took a turn or two more, when, to my great surprise, 
1 saw him squir away his watch a considerable way 
into the Thames, and, with great sedateness in his 
looks, put up the pebble, he had before found, in his 
fob. As I have naturally an aversion to much speak- 
ing, and do not love to be the messenger of ill news, 
especially when it comes too late to be useful, I left 
him to be convinced of his mistake in due time, and 
continued my walk." 

I trust I have said sufficient, under the head of con- 
versation, to prevent my being misunderstood, and to 
prevent your mistaking good humor for any thing like 
buffoonery. It must arise from kind feelings within; and 
a smile must be ready to aid those feelings in express- 
ing themselves. It may be an encouragement to know 
that every exercise of these kind feelings will surely in- 
crease them ; so that what is begun as a duty, will soon be- 
come a pleasure. We all know that outward expressions 
of kindness have no value any further than as they are 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL 241 

Conscience to be cultivated. Gospel principles lead to politeness. 

/ an index of the feelings within ; but it is a kind provision 
of Providence, that even the outward expression of kind- 
ness has a tendency to cultivate the feelings of good will. 

2. That the cultivation of the conscience will in- 
crease your politeness. 

The very spirit of the gospel is, that you love your 
neighbor as yourself; and all know that this is triie 
politeness ; so that, when you see an impolite man 
raake great pretensions to religion, you give him credit 
for having probably deceived himself. You may now 
be able to think of a man who is notorious for being 
wicked. Look at him, and see if he be not far from 
being a man of politeness. Look again, and see if 
his wickedness did not first commence at the point of 
being impolite towards- men ; for impudence towards 
men will almost invariably lead to disrespect of God, 
so that he who begins by throwing aside kind and 
proper feelings towards his fellows, will most assured- 
ly end in despising the commands of his Maker. 
The best way, then, to become a man of politeness, is 
to begin with the heart, to act on the principle of 
making every one as happy as in your power, because 
you would have all others do so to you. No one 
can act on this principle, for any length of time, with- 
out possessing all the essentials of politeness. You 
should, therefore, never try to see hov^ much of kind- 
ness you can express, but how much you can feel. 
Every feeling of deference towards your Maker ; every 
16 



242 THE STUDENT'S RIANUAL. 

Cheerfulness essential. 

feeling of contrition before him ; every season of self- 
abasement for your sins, — will bring you nearer and 
nearer that state in which you will hardly fail of being 
a man of politeness. If we were made for ourselves 
alone, and had no other aim but to demand new in- 
dulgences from others, we might say nothing about 
the heart. But if you are to love yoiir neighbor as 
yourself, and if there be a score, a hundred, or a 
thousand, who are so situated that they are your neigh- 
bors, — then, as you divide ofp'the happiness which you 
distribute, you will seek but your share ; of course, 
' your great object will be to distribute to others. 

3. That cheerfulness is essential to U polite man. 

A gloomy, melancholy man can never think of 
much except himself He cannot forget so important 
a personage to attend to you. He may have cause 
for all his bad feehngs, sufficient to excuse them ; but 
you cannot count any of them as being' very kindly 
towards others. A sick man, as he lies on his bed, 
will hear the voice of one man as he enters the house, 
and dread to see him. Why ? Because he knows 
that he has so long brooded over himself, that he has 
not a single kind, cheerful expression for any one else. 
Another man enters, and the very sound of his voice 
cheers him, and the smile and the visit are a reviving 
cordial. He is a man of cheerful feelings and habits j 
and, having these, he tries to communicate them to 
atliers. When you cultivate cheerfulness, then, you 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 243 

Health essential to cheerfulness. 

cultivatej at the same time, the habit of pohteness. 
There is a keenness, a razor-Hke irony, about some 
men, which assumes the airs of cheerfulness, but 
which, in reahty, is only a genteel way of snarling. 
Much that is impolite, and really bitter, escapes in 
this way. 

For the purpose of appearing cheerful, you must 
really feel so; and to feel cheerful, you must be in 
good health. No one can feel cheerful with a severe 
toothache upon him, or when turning and tossing 
under a burning fever. Your health must be good, 
and kept good by a frugal diet, and a regular course 
of bodily exercise. It is impossible for the mind to 
be cheerful and the spirits buoyant without this. No 
man ought to undertake to pass himself off in compa- 
ny, or expect to render himself even tolerably agree- 
able, for a single day, unless he has prepared himself 
by some suitable exercise. The cheerfulness and 
buoyancy of a hunting party is proverbial : it is owing 
to the fact that they are all taking an agreeable exer- 
cise, without having an object before them of impor- 
tance enough to do any thing more than barely excite 
them. "There is no real life but cheerful hfe; there- 
fore valetudinarians should be sworn, before they en- 
ter into company, not to say a word of themselves 
until the meeting breaks up." Never suffer your 
body to droop, for the want of exercise, so as to sink 
below the power of wishing to please and to be 
pleased. 



244 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 



Friendship cultivates politeness. Subordination. 



The cultivation of friendship will add to your po- 
litieness ; for, so far from rendering the heart self- 
ish by giving warm affections to a few choice friends, 
it will become more generous towards others. " He 
that has no one to love, or to confide in, has little to 
hope. He wants the radical principle of happiness ;" 
and he who wants this, will in vain strive to be a 
happy man, or to confer happiness upon others. 

I shall do great injustice to my readers unless 1 
speak on the subject of subordination with great 
plainness. What need be said will not occupy a long 
space, especially as I shall pretend to offer no new 
theory on the subject. 

The mind loves to be free ; and so stropgly does it 
disdain confinement, and a relinquishment of its own 
wishes, that it is not unfrequently unwilling to see the 
necessity for its doing so. 

" Order is Heaven's first law." From the earliest 
dawn of reason to the hour of death, when we reluc- 
tantly take the last bitter medicine, we have to 
submit our wills, more or less, to the will of others. 
We cannot, in childhood, see that the motive which 
induces our parents to lay us under restraints, is a re- 
gard to our future happiness. It seems to us to be 
caprice, or, at least, arbitrary dictation. But we learn 
to submit our wills to theirs ; and here is the founda- 
tion of government, and here commences a system of 
bonds and obligations which abide on us through life. 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 245 



Subordination to the state-laws. Laws of friendship. 



As we advance in life, we see that the reason of fami- 
ly-government is not a love of authority, or of an in- 
fliction of punishment; but it arises from compassion 
to our ignorance, and a desire to form our characters 
for the world in which we are to live and act. 

As we leave the paternal roof, the laws of the state 
reach us, and throw their obligations around us. If 
we violate them, the laws to which all have agreed to 
abide, take hold of us. The judge is only the mouth 
of the law, and the magistrate who punishes is only 
the hand. But it is the law, the naked law, which 
no one or two can alter, which reaches the highest 
and the lowest in the community with entire impartial- 
ity, that compels us to bow our wills to its mandates. 
Without this, no community could be safe or prospered. 
Life, character, and property, would alike be a prey 
to the wicked, without this power and majesty of law. 

If you step aside from the laws of the land, and 
seek for a circle of most valued friends where the 
heart may revel in its freedom, you will find that even 
here there are the nicest of laws, which you must 
obey, or you are expelled from that, circle, and your 
friends renounce you. These laws are not the enact- 
ments of legislatures or senates, but they are as well 
defined and settled as if they were, and their infrac- 
tion will as surely and as speedily be visited with 
punishment as if the magistrate stood with his sword 



246 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 



Laws of the street. Illustrated. 

to revenge their violation. The most dehcate and 
nice laws must be obeyed, if you would have friends. 
The cords are silk, and the first thread that is broken 
will bring retribution upon you. 

Even the loose acquaintance of the street in which 
you daily walk, throws its laws over you, and you 
must obey them ; be civil in your appearance and 
manners ; return kind salutations and kind looks ; or 
you lose character and friends also. It would be 
easy for you to ruin your influence, and almost your 
character, by a violation of these unwritten rules. I 
once saw a student standing under a tree at the cor- 
ner of the street, sketching a building with his pencil. 
Another student came sauntering along with his com- 
panion, arm in arm. As they passed the corner, 
one says to the other, " Well, well, something is now 
to be done ! " in a tone which can be conceived, but 
not expressed on paper. The poor limner blushed, 
crammed his paper into his pocket, and walked away ; 
but the sting of that rudeness will never entirely leave 
his heart. The form, the gait, the tones, of that rude 
young man, will ever remain vividly before him. Was 
there any need of such rudeness ? Were not the laws 
of good breeding violated ? 

You cannot expect, then, to go to an academy, a 
college, or to any other institution, at which scores 
and hundreds of youth are educated, without finding 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 247 

A book needed. 

laws,- — laws that are definite, tangible, and which are 
made to he oheyed, and which must be obeyed, or the 
character of the institution is gone. 

One of the most useful books that could be written, 
would be a particular and accurate " History of Col- 
lege. MeheUions '/^ and I cannot but hope that some 
one — and the individual could easily be selected— who 
is well qualified, will undertake it. The only danger 
would be, that the work would be too voluminous. 
As you open the work, the chapters would read some- 
thing like the following:- — '^A brief history of the 
Great Stomach Rebellion ; wherein is set forth how 
a whole class refused to eat — ^how they assembled and 
defied the faculty — their eloquent speeches reported 
— how half the class, including every rebel, were ex- 
pelled from college, and went home in disgrace — 
how many of them became dissipated, and all of them 
disappointed the hopes of their parents, and their own, 
and never accomplished any thing which endears their 
memory to their survivors,' he. ' A concise history 
of the Green-pea Rebellion, which arose because that 
when the steward obtained all the peas which he 
could, he did not obtain more ; and which resulted in 
the final expulsion of only sixteen from the College.' 
^ An authentic history of the Window-breaking Re- 
hellion, wherein is set forth the severity of the faculty, 
inasmuch as they would not commute the punishment 
of one who broke seven windows in one night, though 



248 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Specimen of the contents of the new book. Four suggestions. 

the class petitioned it ; but, on the contrary, on receiv- 
ing the vote of one third of the class, that they would 
not recite till said class-mate was restored, proceeded 
to discipline the third.' ' The melancholy history of 
the Gunpowder Rebellian; showing the arbitrary 
proceedings of the faculty in punishing ten of the 
most promising young men that ever lived, for the 
trifling, inconsiderate amusement of blowing up five 
of the out-buildings with ten pounds of powder ; with 
an appendix, containing the votes and speeches of 
the students, together with their thrilling and soul-har- 
rowing appeal to the public' 

These are but the mere specimens of the titles of the 
chapters. The book should be faithfully written, and 
if it could be embellished with a portrait or two of the 
greatest sufferers, in each chapter, it would be a most 
valuable vade mecum for the student. 

Now, before you ever engage in a rebelliqn, there 
are four points of consideration at whicjji I beg you 
carefully to look : — 

1. That, at such times, the faculty are always act- 
ing on right principles, and the students always on 
wronoj. 

In every contest of the kind, you will remember 
that you are to act against, and measure strength with 
men, who have the coolness of age and the wisdom of 
experience. In your vacations, or at any other time, 
you would be highly offended at the suggestion that 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 249 

The faculty are on right principles. Their character is good. 

your instructors are not men of candor, of judgment, 
and of kind feelings. But you come back, and, at 
some unexpected turn of affairs, all on a sudden, these 
men are so changed that they are neither wise nor 
prudent, neither just, nor humane. How came they to 
be altered so greatly, and so suddenly ? Is it so that 
they have altered ? or do you now look at them through 
the medium of excited passion ? You will remember 
that their age will not be likely to permit your teach- 
ers to be thrown into acts of indiscretion by passion : 
their character, their reputation, their interests, their 
standing before the community, all unite to urge them 
to treat you fairly, and honorably, and kindly. Even 
if they were all bad men, and had scarcely a particle 
of moral feeling in exercise, every selfish motive of 
the human heart forbids their abusing any power which 
they may have over you. In a country like ours, 
where the very breath of our nostrils is the good opin- 
ion of the public, and where schools and colleges are 
so numerous, that each has to be very circumspect in 
order to get its share of students, the danger is very 
small, indqed, that the hand of oppression will be heavy 
upon the students. I am not anxious to press this 
view of the subject, because it is unnecessary. Men 
cannot be found, intrusted with our high literary insti- 
tutions, who are capable of being on the wrong side of 
the question, when a contest arises between them and 
the students. 



250 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Public sentiment always in favor of the faculty, 

2. The second suggestion is, that, in every rebellion, 
public sentiment will always set against the students. 

Multitudes have been disappointed in this respect, 
and that, too, most grievously. A great number get 
excited on some subject, — a subject about which, indi- 
vidually, they would be ashamed to murmur, if they 
had to do it alone : they have meetings, they talk, they 
make most thrilling speeches, and work the thing up, 
till, in the medium through which they are looking, 
iheir sufferings are intolerable, and the conduct of the 
faculty is atrocious. N^ever w^ere young men of 
such character and promise so treated before. Tliey 
pass resolutions heated in the furnace of passion ; they 
transmit these to their instructors, and then breast 
themselves in their positions, and, in tones of defiance, 
ask, in all the spirit of a command, that the faculty 
meet their wishes. The faculty have seen such 
storms before : secure in their own upright designs — 
secure in the confidence of the whole community — they 
coolly tell their threatening pupils, that they diXe the 
party to yield, to submit to law, to acknowledge wrong, 
and promise to do better. But they will not yield, — • 
not they. They will strike a blow which will shake 
the institution to its very foundations. They will leave, 
and appeal, to the public. To the public they appeal, 
in tones loud and high-wrought. The good public 
hears them ; and, here and there, a very radical news- 
paper utters a faint echo of sympathy ; but, for the 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 251 

The student misses his aim in rebelhng. 

most partj at least in ninety-nine cases out of a hun- 
dred, the good public laughs at the appeal, despises 
the threatenings, mocks at the idea that these misguid- 
ed youth are not lost to any useful purpose, turns and 
applauds the firmness of the institution, and gathers 
round it with new confidence. Others now rush to 
fill their places, rejoicing to put themselves under men 
who have laws and regulations, and who will, at any 
rate, see that these laws are respected and obeyed. 

3. The third suggestion is, that, in these cases, the 
students always miss their aim. 

The aim of every rebeUion is, to free the students 
from the exercise of severe, arbitrary power. But, 
so far from doing this, the very first moment you re- 
bel, you place yourself entirely within the grasp of 
that power. While you obey the laws, they are your 
protection, and no injustice can be done to you ; but, 
the very moment that you violate them, you lie at the 
mercy of those who execute those laws. You hold 
your place in your class, and in the institution, entire- 
ly by courtesy ; and, of all the situations for a noble 
mind to be placed in, this is the most humiliating. " A 
great mind disdains to hold any thing by courtesy, and 
therefore, never usurps what a lawful claimant may 
take away." Such is the testimony of one whom every 
student in the world reverences. Do the young men 
think of this, when they rush into a rebellion ? Like 
the poor fly attempting to free himself from a web, into 



252 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Folly of rebellion illustrated. 

which he voluntarily thrusts himself, every plunge, and 
every agony of passion, only takes from his strength, 
and places him more and more at the mercy of his 
destroyer. Was a class, or any part of a class, ever 
known to better themselves, in any respect, by a re- 
bellion? It is a very expensive way of gaining re- 
dress ; and, what is worse, the redress is never gained. 
A man, who has been considered almost an oracle to 
the nation, once contrived a new kind of saw-mill. 
It was to go by wind. But, for the purpose of having 
the wind, he built it on the highest hill in the region. 
There the wind was stronor and unfailing. The mill 
was built, and worked to admiration. But there was 
one capital defect, after all. The hill was so high and 
so steep, that he could never get a log to his mill. It 
would repay for the great efforts necessary to get up 
a rebellion in college, were there any possible way of 
making it of any use, when once excited. But this 
will always be an unanswerable objection to the whole 
system. 

4. The fourth suggestion is, that a rebellion gen- 
erally results in the ruin of several members of the 
institution. 

When an excitement first begins, it is usually among 
some two or three, who feel that they possess popu- 
larity among their fellows, and who are conscious that 
they are none too popular with their instructors. They 
raise the cry of oppression, and, in order to lead others 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 



Ruinous results of rebellion. How excitement is produced. 

forward, at once make two or three plunges, which, 
they are awarcj put their own characters beyond recov- 
ery. Their all is now staked, and the more they can 
draw away with them, the better they will feel ; just as 
highwaymen are said to feel that their vocation is hon- 
orable in proportion to the number of outlaws they can 
muster. Having once committed themselves, their 
song is, 

" Rebellion is my theme all day ; 
I only wish 'twould come 
(As who knows but perhaps it may .^) 
A little nearer home." 

The excitement becoming more general, the great 
body who fall in and plunge with the rest, do not stop 
to ask whether they have a cause that will justify them 
in so doing ; nor do they ask who are the leaders in 
it, nor what will be the results ; but they are afraid of 
losing popularity by any appearance of reluctance. 
They cannot stand before the finger of contempt, 
which, at once, points at them, nor endure those names 
and keen reproaches which are so intolerable to a man 
of generous spirit, if in any measure deserved. Four 
fifths, at least, who are drawn into a rebellion, do it 
from fear of losing their popularity among their fellows. 
I have known those who could bluster at a public 
meeting, and talk of trampling the " sheep-skin," or 
diploma, under foot with contempt, go away to their 
rooms and weep at the thought that they were prepar- 



254 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

A mistaken notion. 

ing a cup of sorrow for a father, whose heart was 
bound up in his son, or were about to dash the hopes 
of the fond, widowed mother, w^ho had denied herself 
all the luxuries, and many of the comforts of life, for 
years, that she might educate her son. And then, 
there is an affectation of manly feeling, the show 
of a spirit that can rise above the loss of hopes and 
prospects, and dare to make its owri destiny. Few' 
things are more insupportable to the young man 
than to have his courage challeno;ed. He will throw 
himself headlong into a rebellion to show that he 
is a lad of spirit and courage. Brave youth ! he 
need not pay such a price for what is already ac- 
knowledged to be his. Nobody will, or does, doubt 
the courage of our young men at our seminaries. Ed- 
ucated as they are, they have a courage which death 
could not destroy. Why should they commit suicide 
to prove what needs no proof? 

I beseech my young friends to consider the results 
of a rebellion. It may not injure him who is now 
readmg these lines. But a rebelhon must and will 
result in prodigious evils. Seldom does an institution 
pass through such a scene without ha,ving a third, a 
half, and not unfrequendy the whole, of a class expel- 
led, or sent away with such marks of disgrace and dis- 
approbation, that no respectable college will hereafter 
receive them. The result will be, that the rebellion is 
purchased by the ruin of nearly all those who are sacri- 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 255 



Two reasons why a rebellion is so ruinous. The first reason. 



ficed in the contest. You may take the names of all 
those who have thus violently broken away from col- 
lege, and you will be surprised to see how few of them , 
ever reach eminence, or even respectability, in any pro- 
fession. It has always been so, and must continue to 
be so. There are two reasons why it must be so. 
Firstj a young man cannot go through a rebellion, and 
be sent from colleo-e, without receivino- such a shock in 
the process, that it will be next to impossible to recover 
from it. No sudden changes can be otherwise than in- 
jurious to the mind. Scarcely any change can be great- „ 
er than takes place when a student is, in a moment, 
thrust fi'om the bosom of his college into the world, 
with a character unformed, and without the power 
of retrieving his loss. He may laugh at his prospects, 
talk with contempt about being " incapacitated from 
admission into every institution of our country, and 
writhing beneath the indignation df a father, and the 
weeping reproaches of a mother ; " but when the die 
is once cast, and he is thrown out upon the world, and 
separated from the cheering voices of those who are in 
like condemnation with himself, he will find his heart 
is desolate indeed. Home, the most delightful spot 
upon earth, can bring no joy to him. He goes there, 
and meets the face of the father whose goodness he 
has abused, and whose hopes he has blasted ; of the 
mother whose sorrows and anxieties he has repaid by 
dashing the fond pride of one whose heart's blood 



256 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Difficult to recover. The second reason. 

would freely flow for him ; of the sisters who used to 
come around him as their guide, and cheer him on by 
I every means in their power. All is disappointment | 

at home. Does he leave home and turn to his ac- | 

quaintances } They despise one who could thus 
throw away the highest advantages, and prefer his 
will, at the expense of the happiness of his family, and 
of his own prospects. His soul has been frenzied al- 
most to madness, and the passions have been called up 
till the reason sunk under them ; and now, when the boil- 
ing waters subside, and Reason once more looks abroad, 
she sees what was before a rich and beautiful vale, now 
desolated and seared by fire. Of all who know him, 
he can receive sympathy from none, whose sympathy 
is not a disgrace. He is now in great danger of flying 
to stimulants to relieve and drown his troubles, or of 
sinking down in misanthropy and inactivity. The 
shock which his whole character and plans have re- 
ceived is inconceivably great. The bankruptcy of 
the merchant w^ho falls from profuse wealth even to 
eating the bread of charity, will not, in any measure, 
compare with it. Few can ever hope to recover from 
such a fall. 

The second reason why such young men as are thus 
sent from college can hardly ever reach respectabihty, 
is, that they forever deprive themselves of the very 
discipline of mind which is absolutely essential to form 
a distinguished character. I am not wishing to pass 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 257 



Discipline of mind lost. Rebelling" a dishonorable business. 



a universal censure, nor to say that there may not be, 
here and there, a rare instance in whicli the loss has 
been made up, and the young man has been sa^ed. 
These, if the cases do ever occur, are exceptions. 
But break off a young man from his studies when he 
has but just commenced the discipline of his mind, 
shut him out from every institution in the land, and 
let him feel that he has committed an error which can 
never be retrieved, and where is he to obtain that 
mental discipline, and that thorough education, which 
are essential to his future success ? His plans are all 
broken up ; his associates in study are all dissevered 
from him ; his instructors are all taken from him ; and 
his prospect of ever becoming what he once justly 
hoped, is small indeed. You will never find a man 
over the ao;e of fortv, w^ho ever was ent^atred in a col- 
lege rebellion, or who ever saw one, who will not 
speak of it in terms of the most decided disapprobation. 
Besides, are you acting a generous, manly part? 
You have voluntarily placed yourself under the laws of 
your college, and under the men who administer those 
laws ; you have promised solemnly to obey them. And 
now, what shall be said about the honor of a young man 
who engages in a rebellion, and talks about his *' hon- 
or," while he is violating that honor which he pledged 
when he became a member of that institution ? If 
you feel that you are not dealt with justly and fairly — 
that you are degraded and abused — ask and receive an 
17 



258 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

No need of it. 

honorable dismission, and go to some other college, 
where you will be properly treated. But do not 
plunge yourself, your class-mates, your parents, and 
the whole circle of friends, into deep trouble and last- 
ing sorrow^, with the vain hope of making it clear that 
you are a young man of honor, nice feelings, or of 
true courage. No one doubts that you possess all 
these. But you run too great a hazard, when you 
stake your character, and that of others younger than 
yourself, who will follow you, upon the desperate at- 
tempt of dictating conditions to a literary institution. 
It is thoughtlessness of the consequences, rather than 
deep depravity, which draws so many into these 
troubles. If you are such a genius that it must work 
out of your fingers' ends, and your hands cannot keep 
out of mischief, go home, and employ those hands in 
some mechanical business. But do not stay 'where 
you are acting a part dishonorable to your own feel- 
ings, which will, sooner or later, end in lasting dis- 
grace. Have the hardihood, if it be required, to 
overlook petty inconveniences and vexations in your 
present situation, and, while you are a student, stand 
up in all the strength of an honorable, high-minded 
man. 

" Os homini sublime dedit 
Coelumque tueri." 

. That you will meet with many things, in themselves 
disagreeable, and trying to your habits and your pa- 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 259 

Student's life one of trial. 

tience, you must expect. The whole season of study 
is one of unpleasant restraint and of severe discipline. 
It will cost many sacrifices of feeling to obtain a good 
education ; but, when once obtained, you will be your 
own master, and will be fit to govern yourself, and will 
feel amply repaid for all that you endure. But if you 
would respect yourself through life, be free from per- 
petual mortification, never engage in a college re- 
hellion. 



CHAPTER VIII. 

EXERCISE. DIET. ECONOMY. 

So much has of late been written on the subject of 
exercise, that it is in dano;er of becominsf a stale sub- 
ject, even before it is understood, and long before it is 
reduced to systematic practice. It must be plain to 
my reader, in the very outset, that the whole hopes, 
prospects, every thing dear to the student, must de- 
pend upon his health. If the powers of the body be 
palsied or prostrated, or in any way abused, his mind 
must so far sympathize as to be unfitted for making 
progress in study. You may let the system run down 
and lose its tone by neglect, and, for a time, the mind 
retains its activity, as the fires created by some kinds 
of fuel burn brighter and brighter, till they sink away 
at once. Sometimes, while the poor house in which 
the soul resides is rapidly preparing to fall, the mind 
is even more active as decay approaches, and the fires 
of the soul burn with a more beautiful and intense 
glow. So it is said, that the ear will frequently be- 
come so exquisite, just before dissolution, that it can 
gather music from the room of death; the harp is 
about to be crushed in pieces, but, ere it breaks, it 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 261 

Health every thing- to the student.. Why this necessity is not felt. 

sends forth notes that are sweet beyond expression, 
till it breathes itself away into ruins. 
• In other employments, if health fails, it may be re- 
covered, in very many cases, by care and exercise. 
The business goes on, and the loss of time and prop- 
erty usually do not suffer at once. Not so with him 
whose all depends upon the constant employment of 
the mind. Three months' loss of time, while in college, 
will blast many fair hopes and bright prospects : it 
will depress you and perplex you as a scholar, and, 
probably, have a material influence upon you through 
the whole of life. You may be poor — you may have 
had but small advantages heretofore ; but above these, 
by industry and application, you may rise. But if 
your health be gone, you are, at once, cut off from 
doing any thing by way of study. The mind cannot, 
and will not, accomplish any thing, unless you have 
good health. Resolve, then, that, at any rate, so far 
as it depends upon yourself, you will have the mens 
Sana in sano corpore. 

It is frequently the case that the student, as the *" 
fields of knowledge open before him in all their bound- 
less extent, feeling strong in the buoyancy and elasti- 
city of youth, and knowing that his character must all 
depend upon himself, sits down closely to his books, 
resolved to stop for nothing, till his scholarship is fair 
and high. The first, the second, and the third admo- 
nitions, in regaid to his health, are unheeded, till, at 



262 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Henry Kirke White. 

last, he can study no longer, and then, too late, he dis- 
covers that the seeds orf death are planted in him. 
The more promising the student, the higher are his 
aims, and the stronger are the aspirations of his genius, 
the greater is the danger. Multitudes of the most 
promising young men have, within the last few years, 
found an early grave ; — ^not because they studied too 
intensely, but because they paid no attention to the 
body. The beautiful lament which w^as sung over 
the gifted White might be repeated every year, and 
be equally applicable to many who were of equal 
promise, though their names are " unknown to song. ' 

" Oh ! what a noble heart was here undone, , 
When Science' self destroyed her favorite son ! 

, Yes, she too much indulged thy fond pursuit ; 
She sowed the seeds, but Death has reaped the fruit 
'Twas thine own genius gave the final blow, 
And helped to plant the wound that laid thee low : 
So the struck eagle, stretched upon the plain, 
No more through rolling clouds to soar again. 
Viewed his own feather on the fatal dart, 
And winged the shaft that quivered in his heart. 
Keen were his pangs ; but keener far to feel, 
He nursed the pinion which impelled the steel ; 
While the same plumage that had warmed his nest 
Drank the last life-drop of his bleeding breast." 

It may, no doubt, be true, that the man who sits 
down to study, and gives his whole soul to it, without 
much if any regard to health, may, for a time, impro 



IHE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 263 

Rapid maturity of the mind not desirable. A fashion in this country. 

fast, and mature with great rapidity. He may pass 
over the ground fast, and appear a prodigy of genius. 
But it is ahnost certain that such a one is soon to 
reach the limits of his attainments, and, if he does not 
speedily find his grave, will soon be too feeble to do 
^ny thing but drag out a discouraging existence. For 
one, I do not feel that it is so very desirable to mature 
the mind as early as some strive to do ; and, perhaps 
we labor under a great mistake, on this point, in this 
country. Our country is a youth, and nothing but 
wbat is elastic and youthful, is in fashion. Our legis- 
lators, our professional men, must all be young to be 
popular. The stars are to be looked at only while 
they are rising. A man of fifty is considered almost 
superannuated, with us. Such is the fashion. It is 
not so in other countries. Even La Fayette would 
not have been considered fit to stand at the head of a 
great national army, in times of revolution, in this coun- 
try, after he was eiglity. In England, the throne is 
usually surrounded by a galaxy of talent which is the 
admiration of the world. Are they men who matured 
in boyhood, and whose education was completed at 
twenty-five? Far from it. They are usually old 
men, whose minds have been slow in becominu- ma- 
ture, whose judgment has been made sound by read- 
ing, by thought, by observation, and by years. I 
make these remarks, because I would have our young 
men feel that the business of study is for life ; and 



264 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Study endangers the health. Who is a hero. 

that, instead of trying to do all that can be done in a 
very short time, they should lay their plans and make 
their calculations to live long, and for many years be 
improving and ripening for usefulness. 

It is impossible for any man to be a student with- 
out endangering the health. Man was made to be ' 
active. The hunter, who roams through the forest, or 
climbs the rocks of the Alps, is the man who is 
hardy, and in the most perfect health. The sailor, 
who has been rocked by a thousand storms, and who 
labors day and night, is a hardy man, unless dissipa- 
tion has broken his constitution. Any man of active 
habits is likely to enjoy good health, if he does not 
too frequently over-exert himself. But the student's 
habits are all unnatural ^ and by them nature is con- 
tinually cramped and restrained. " Men err in noth- 
ing more than in the estimate which they make of hu- 
man labor. The hero of the world is the man that 
makes a bustle, — the man that makes the road smoke 
under his chaise-and-four, — the man that raises a 
dust about him, — the man that ravages or devastates 
empires ! But what is the real labor of this man, com- 
pared with that of a silent sufferer ? He lives on his 
projects ; he encounters, perhaps, rough roads, incom- 
modious inns, bad food, storms and perils, weary days 
and sleepless nigliis ; — but what are these ? His pro- 
ject, his point, the thing that has laid hold on his 
heart, glory, a name, consequence, pleasure, wealth — 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 265 

We try to mature too soon. 

these render the man callous to the pains and efforts 
of the body. 1 have been in both states, and there- 
fore understand them ; and I know that men form 
this false estimate. Besides, there is something in 
bustle, and stir, and activity, that supports itself At 
one period, I preached and read five times on a Sun- 
day, and rode sixteen miles. But what did it cost 
me ? Nothing ! Yet most men would have looked 
on, while I was rattling from village to village, with 
all the dogs barking at my heels, and would have call- 
ed me a hero ; whereas, if they were to look at me 
now, they would call me an idle, lounging fellow. 
* He gets into his study — he walks from end to end — • 
he scribbles on a scrap of paper — he throws it away, 
and scribbles on another, — he sits down — scribbles 
again — walks about ! ' The man cannot see that here 
is an exhaustion of the spirit which, at night, will leave 
me worn to the extremity of endurance. He cannot 
see the numberless efforts of mind, which are crossed 
and stifled, and recoil on the spirits like the fruitless ef- 
forts of a traveller to oret firm footins; amona: the ashes 
on the steep sides of Mount Etna." 

There can be no room for doubt, in the mind of an 
attentive observer, that one cause why so many of our 
promising young men sink into a premature grave, is, 
that they try to do so much in so sliort a time. By 
this I mean, that they feel that the great work of dis- 
ciplining and stocking the mind must be done before 



266 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 



Difficulties which prevent exercise. First difficulty. 

the age of twenty-five. Whoever embraces this no- 
tion must, at once, abandon the idea of ever excelHng, 
or else he must sit down to his books with an inten- 
sity of application that cannot but endanger life. 

There are several difficulties in the way of your 
taking regular, vigorous exercise. 

1. You do not now feel the necessity of it. 
We take no medicine till necessity 'compels us ; 
and exercise to the student is a constant medicine. 
You are now young ; you feel buoyant, have a good 
appetite, have strength, fine health, and fine spirits. 
Tim^ flies on downy wings. Why should you teach 
yourself to be a slave to exercise, and bring your- 
self into habits which would compel you, every day, 
to take exercise? It seems like fitting yourself with 
a pair of heavy crutches, when you have as good legs 
to walk with as ever carried an emperor. Let those 
who are in danger of the gout, or of falling victims to 
disordered stomachs, begin the regimen ; but for your- 
self, you do not feel your need. No, nor will you 
feel it, till you are probably so far gone, that exercise 
cannot recover you. On this point, yop must take 
the testimony of the multitudes who have gone over 
the ground on which you now stand, and who under- 
stand it air. They will tell you, that it is not at your 
option whether you will take exercise or not ; you 
must take exercise, or you are lost to all your hopes 
and all your prospects. 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 267 

Second difficulty. Third difficulty. 

2. You feel pressed for time, and therefore cannot 
take exercise. 

Your hours of reciting are all marked out. The 
bell will ring at the moment, and, prepared or not, you 
must be at recitation. You have such a pressure of 
studies — perhaps labor under some peculiar disadvan- 
tages — and so many extra efforts to make out of the 
regular study hours, that you really cannot find time 
to exercise. Let me tell you that you miscalculate 
on one important point. If you will try the plan of 
taking regular, vigorous exercise every day for a sin- 
gle term, you will find that you can perform the same 
duties, and the same amount of study, much easier 
than without the exercise. The difierence will be as- 
tonishing to yourself. The time spent in thus invig- 
orating the system will be made up, many times over, 
in the ease and comfort with which your mind takes 
hold of study. 

3. You do not feel interested in your exercise, and 
therefore do not take it. 

Many schemes have been devised, by which the stu- 
dent will take regular exercise, and, at the sam.e time, 
be mterested in it. - The manual labor system has been 
greatly extolled. The gymnastic system was no less 
so. In the latter, I have never had any confidence; 
and, though 1 would not speak decidedly against the 
former, inasmuch as it may, in certain cases, do good, 
yet 1 must say that I do not believe it will prevail, in 



268 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

The manual labor system. Objections to it. 

our systems of education, to any great extent. The 
system must stand, if at all, by appealing to the self- 
ishnsss or ■v\^nts of the student, and telling him that 
in this way, he can earn money. But this will not be 
true in all cases, and probably not in a majority of in- 
stances. But there seems to me one great objection 
to it ; and that is, it is too monotonous. When you 
lay aside your books, you want something to do which 
will not merely relax the mind from the fatigue of 
study, but which will also tend to enliven it, and 
render it cheerful. The monotony of the work-shop 
will hardly do this. Judging from experience, 1 de- 
cidedly prefer walking to all other exercise for the 
student. Buchan urges it as the best possible exer- 
cise, as it calls more muscles into motion than any 
other which is not positil^ely painful. The advan- 
tages of this mode of exercise are, that it is simple. 
The apparatus is all at hand complete. You need 
not wait for any importation of machinery. It is in 
the open air, so that the lungs can, at once, receive 
the pure air of heaven, and the eye gaze upon hill 
and dale, upon trees and flowers, upon objects ani- 
mate and inanimate. The very objects of sight and 
sound cheer and enliven the mind, and raise the spir- 
its. The noise of the hammer or saw, the walls of 
the shop, and whole interior of the work-shop, have a 
very different effect upon the feelings and spirits. If 
any one is skeptical on this point, a few months' trial 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 269 

Walking- the best exercise for students. Fourth difficulty. 

in the two places will remove all doubt. Another 
advantage of walking is, that you can have a friend to 
walk with, and unbend the mind, and cheer the spirits, 
by pleasant conversation. This is a point of great 
consequence ; and it can be attained only in walking. 
You hear the same sounds, you see the same objects, 
you relieve the way, and the fatigues of exercise, by 
conversation. For this reason, you should calculate, 
in most cases, to have company in your walks. Once 
try the method of walking with a friend regularly for 
a few weeks, ajad you will be surprised at the results. 
On those afternoons in which study is not required, 
be,sqre and take long walks, and lay up health for 
days to come. I once know" two students who invig- 
orated their constitutions astonisiiingly by this simple 
process. During one summer, they walked over tw^o 
hundred miles in company, counting no w^aik which 
was under five miles. In a short time, you will feel 
so much at home in the exercise, that you will not 
inquire what weather k is., but, Has the hour for walk- 
ing arrived ? ' 

4. The habits of the student make any bodily ewer" 
tions fatiguing ; and. therefore you neglect exercise.. 

There is no need of going into the physician's depart- 
ment, and assigning the reasons wh}'', by disuse, the body 
soon comes to a state in which we feel it a burden to 
make exertions. Tbefact is unquestionable. You may 
go to your books, and shut yourself up in your roonsi 



270 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

How to meet this difficulty. 

for weeks almost constantly, and the idea of walk- 
ing two or three miles will almost fatigue you of itself. 
The muscles, the joints, the whole house, reluctates at 
the thought of moving. The limbs will ache in a few 
moments, and the will has not the power to enforce 
obedience. Every day you put off the haJ^it of exer- 
cise, the difficulty becomes greater ; so that he who 
has not regular times for taking exercise, will soon 
cease to take any. Nothing can make it pleasant, or 
even tolerable, but the constant practice of it. You 
cannot snatch it here and there, and find it an amuse- 
ment, as you can take up a newspaper ; for it will Be 
a burden. Many have, now and then, taken what 
they call '' a dish of exercise ; " and when over, they 
felt worse than when they took none : indeed, it came 
near making them sick ; and so they sagely conclude 
that exercise does not agree with them. Like the 
Indian, with a single feather under his head on the 
rock, and which made him wonder how any one could 
sleep on a whole bed of feathers, they wonder what 
they do who exercise daily. Exercise is pleasant or 
otherwise, not in proportion to its being light or heavy, 
but to its regularity. The habits of the mind, ancl more 
especially those of the body, will forever forbid your 
enjoying the luxuries and the benefits of it, unless it 
be regular. Keep this in mind, and it will probably 
account for much of the unwillingness which you may 
now feel to taking exercise. 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 371 

Exercise must be regular. Must be agreeable. 

Exercise, then, to be a blessing to you, must be 
qualified by the following rules : — 

(rt.) It must be regular, and daily. 

Nature has planted hunger within us, so that we 
shall daily bring supplies, to meet the wastes of the 
body. But, without exercise, the system has not the 
power to appropriate these supplies, and reduce them, 
so that they become nutriment. Be as regular in 
taking exercise, as you are in taking your food. 
There can be no good excuse, so long as you have 
feet, which, in a few moments, will give you the best 
of exercise. 

(6.) It should be pleasant and agreeable. 

The tread-mill would afford regular and powerful 
exercise ; but It would be intolerably Irksome. It 
might give you iron sinews, but the soul would be 
gloomy and cheerless. It is of the first importance, 
that you take pleasure in the exercise. Walking is 
good, but not — if you must walk in a bark-mill. Rid- 
ing is good, but not — if you had to ride a wooden horse, 
or a trip-hammer. Be sure and have your hour gf 
exercising cultivate cheerfulness. " Writers, of every 
age, have endeavored to show that pleasure is in us, 
and not in the objects offered for our amusement. If 
the soul be happily disposed, every thing becomes a 
subject of entertainment, and distress will almost w^ant 
a name. Every occurrence passes in review like the 
figures of a procession : some may be awkward, others 



272 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

It should relax the mind. Cardinal De Retz. 

ill-dressed ; but none but a fool is for this enrao-ed with 
the master of the ceremonies." 

(c.) It should relax the mind. 

Philosophy can teach us to be stubborn or sullen 
when misfortunes come ; and religion can enable us 
to bear them with resignation ; but to a man whose 
health and spirits are good, they never come with their 
full power. We should aim to keep both the mind 
and body in such a condition, that our present circum- 
stances are pleasant, and the future are undreaded. 
But this cannot be done if the mind be always keyed 
up like the strings of the musical instrument. The 
mind that attains the habit of throwing off study and 
apxiety, and relaxing itself at once, has obtained a 
treasure. It was this that gave the famous Cardinal 
De Retz his power over his circumstances, and which 
could enable him to smile at his destiny. When fall- 
en into the hands of his deadliest enemy, and confin- 
ed a close prisoner, he laughed at himself and at his 
persecutor. " In this mansion of distress, though se- 
cluded from his friends, though denied all amusements, 
and even the conveniences of life, teased every hour 
by the impertinences of the wretches who were em- 
ployed to guard him, he still retained his good humor, 
laughed at all their little spite, and carried the jest so 
fer as to be revenged, by writing the life of his 
jailer." 

(d.) It should be increased at convenient seasons. 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 273 

Exercise to be increased at particular times. Professional men. Paul. 

My reader will understand by this that I mean, he 
should improve his vacations to recover from the 
fatigue of the past, and" gather strength and health for 
the future. At a very trifling expense, two young 
men can set off on foot, and, while they are at entire 
leisure, can perform a long journey, see a great variety 
of new objects and curiosities, become acquainted 
with a variety of character, have their spirits raised, 
the tone of the whole system regulated, and all this 
during each vacation. I would urge this, because it 
is naturally impossible for a student to live long, with- 
out some such course. All professional men must 
have the relaxation of travelling. Lawyers have 
more or less of it in attending courts. Physicians are 
constantly moving ; and clergymen must take a jour- 
ney almost every season, or they sink into the grave. 
I have heard, now and then, a severe and captious re- 
mark on this point. Must professional men, and es- 
pecially clergymen, every year or two, take this ex- 
pensive journey ? Farmers and mechanics do not. 
True ; but they would be compelled to do it, if they 
used their minds, and that to the necessary neglect of 
the body. But did not Paul preach continually, 
labor vastly more than we do, and yet live to old age, 
without relaxation ? I answer, no. Far from it. In the 
first place, he travelled almost the whole of the time 
while preaching ; sometimes by land, and then again a 
passenger on the water ; but most of the time on some 
18 



^74 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Illustrious men have labored with the hernds. 

journey. His circuit lay round Jerusalem, the diameter 
being about a thousand miles. In the second place. 
Providence so ordered it, that he was, every now and 
then, taken off from his labors, and shut up in prisons. 
Here he had no desponding feelings, for his religion 
supported him ; here his friends visited him ; and 
here, necessarily, he relaxed and rested, long enough 
to recover from the wearing of preaching, and yet not 
long enouoh to sicken for the want of exercise. 

I should be sorry to have my remarks construed as 
tending to discountenance any manual labor by which 
the student or the professional man may benefit him- 
self Many illustrious men have alternately followed 
the plough, harangued in the forum, commanded 
armies, and bent over their books. The patriarchs 
and the distinguished soti of Jesse were shepherds, as 
were Moses and some of the prophets. Paul, though 
no mean scholar, was a tent-maker. Cleanthes was a 
gardener's laborer, and used to draw water and spread 
it on his garden in the night, that he might have time 
to study during the day. He was the successor of 
Zeno. jEsop and Terence, whose names will live 
while language lives, were slaves. Caesar, as every 
student knows, studied in the camp, swam rivers hold- 
ino; his writings out of the water in one hand ; while his 
clothing was spun and woven by his sisters. Mahom- 
et " made his own fires, swept his own house, milked 
his ewes, and mended his shoes and pantaloons. 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 275 

Examples. Summary of the advantages of exercise. 

with his own sacred hand." Charlemagne, great in 
war, and greater in peace, filled his palace with learn- 
ed men, founded schools and academies through his 
dominions, and yet was so industrious that he could 
frame laws even to the selling of eggs. Of Gustavus 
Vasa it is said, " a better laborer never struck steel." 
It is by no means certain that these men would ever 
have been as distinguished for mental excellence, had 
they not endured all these fatigues of the body. If 
you can feel as cheerful and happy in the garden, the 
field, or the w^ork-shop, as you can while walking with 
a companion, it is altogether to be preferred to walk- 
ing. But that regular daily exercise which is most 
pleasant to you, is that which, of all others, will be 
the most beneficial. 

Permit me to say, in a word, that no student is doing 
justice to himself, to his friends, or to the world, with- 
out being in the habit of a uniform system of exer- 
cise ; and that for the following reasons : — 

1. Your life will probably be prolonged by it. 

It is little less than suicide to neglect to do that, 
without the doing of which you are almost sure to 
shorten your days. The Creator has not so formed 
the body, that it can endure to be confined, without 
exercise, while the mind burns and wears upon its 
energies and powers every moment. 

2. You will enjoy more with than without exercise. 
This remark is to be applied only to those who ex- 



27() THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Mind strengthened by exercise. 

ercise daily ; and to such it does apply with great 
force. Every one who is in this habit will bear ample 
and most decided testimony to this point. 

3. You add to the enjoyment of others. 

A cheerful companion is a treasure ; and all will 

gather around you as such, if you are faithful to your- 

/ self; for exercise will make you cheerful, and cheer- 

I fulness will make friends. 

i 

1 4. Your mind will be strengthened by exercise. 

Were you wishing to cultivate a morbid, sickly taste, 
which will, now and then, breathe out some beautiful 
poetical image, or thought, like the spirit of some most 
refined essence, too delicate to be handled or used 
in this matter-of-fact world, and too ethereal to be en- 
joyed, except by those of like palate, you should shut 
yourself up in your room for a few years, till your 
nerves only continue to act, and the world floats before 
you as a dream. But if you wish for a mind that 
can fearlessly dive into what is deep, soar to what is 
high, grasp and hold what is strong, and move and 
act among minds conscious of its strength, firm, re- 
solved, manly in its aims and purposes, be sure to 
be regular in taking daily exercise. 

" We consist of two parts, of two very different 
parts ; the one inert, passive, utterly incapable of di- 
recting itself, barely ministerial to the other, moved, 
animated by it. When our body has its full health 
and strength, the mmd is so far assisted thereby, that 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 277 

Confirmation. Diet. 

it can bear a closer and longer application ; our ap- 
prehension is readier ; our imagination is livelier ; we 
can better enlarge our compass ctf thought ; we can 
examine our perceptions more strictly, and compare 
them more exactly ; by which means we are enabled 
to form a truer judgment of things ; to remove, more 
effectually, the mistakes into which we have been led 
by a wrong education, by passion, inattention, custom, 
example ; to have a clearer view of what is best for 
us, of what is most for our interest, and thence de- 
termine ourselves more readily to its pursuit, and per- 
sist therein with greater resolution and steadiness." 

In regard to Diet, no class of men are more apt to 
go from one extreme to another than students. You 
will see one, to-day, swallowing hot bread and cold, 
meats and vegetables, and whatever else may fairly 
come in his way. He takes more food into the 
stomach than it can manage, feels sick, and takes to a 
rigid system of dieting, which lasts — till he gets well. 
He hears of such a distinguished man who uses no 
meat, and he must, from his success in study, be con- 
sidered right. Another uses milk only, and has be- 
come a great man ; and therefore the milk diet must be 
the best. He flies from one thing to another, is capri- 
cious and variable, usually for two good reasons — 
First, he exercises so little, or so irregularly, that no 
kind of food can sit kindly upon his stomach ; and, 
secondly, his appetite demands more in quantity than 



278 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Students fickle on this subject. Dryden's account of the first diseases. 

a sedentary man should eat. Hence the student has 
no confidence in his own judgment or experience, and 
thus frequently presents a ludicrous picture of incon- 
stancy. He is really a dyspeptic, and has a weight 
upon him, which, with his habits, must be heavier 
and heavier, till he cannot support it. " Propter sto- 
machum, homo est, quod est," is a maxim which car- 
ries too much of truth in its very face at this day. 
The calls of appetite are hstened to till the appetite 
becomes morbid, the stomach oppressed for weeks ; 
and then the spirits sink, resolution droops, and noth- 
ing can now give a start to the clogged machinery 
but the prescriptions of the physician. When you 
have come regularly under the influence of medicine, 
and must rely upon that to do for you what diet and 
exercise should have done long ago, you are far down 
the hill. 

" The first physicians by debauch were made ; 
Excess began, and sloth sustains the trade. 
By chase our long-lived fathers earned their food : 
Toil strung the nerves and purified the blood : 
But we, their sons, a pampered race of men, 
Are dwindled down to threescore years and ten : 
Better to hunt in fields for health unbought, 
Than fee the doctor for a nauseous draught; 
The wise, for cure, on exercise depend : 
God never made his work for man to mend." 

In this case, as in most others, the cure of the stu- 
dent must consist in prevention. He can, by care and 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 279 

Hints on diet. Diet must correspond witli exercise. 

prudence, in most cases, live long, enjoy good health, 
be a severe student, and do a great amount of good ; 
he may also, by carelessness, in a short time, seal his 
own fate, and ruin himself. There are a few hints 
which I am wishing to suggest on the subject of diet, 
which may be expressed briefly. 

1 . Your diet must correspond with your exercise in 
the open air. 

Many shut themselves up entirely, in unpleasant 
weather, during the, long winter, or whenever they find 
a pressure of business within, or unpleasant weather 
without ; and yet they eat just as voraciously as if they 
took exercise every day. To say that no attention 
is to be paid to diet, is madness. You must pay at- 
tention to it sooner or later. If you are faithful to 
take regular, vigorous exercise every day in the open 
air, then you may eat, and pay less attention to quan- 
tity and quality. But if you take but little exercise, 
you may be sure that you are to be a severe sufferer 
if you do not take food in the same proportion. I 
do not ask you to diet, i. e. to be as difficult, and 
as changeable, and as whimsical, as possible, as 
if the great point were to see how much you can 
torment yourself and others ; but I do ask you to be- 
ware as to the quantity of food which you hurry into 
the stomach three times each day, without giving it 
any rest. It is the quantity, rather than the kinds of 
food, which destroys students : it is certainly true, that 



280 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Fasting. Effects of our habits. 

the more simple the food, the better. If you are un- 
usually hurried this week ; if it storms to-day, so that, 
in these periods, you cannot** go out, and take exercise, 
— ^let your diet be very sparing, though the temptation 
to do otherwise will be very strong. When, by any 
means, you have been injured by your food, have over- 
stepped the proper limits as to eating, I have found, in 
/ such cases, that the most perfect way to recover is to 
' abstain entirely from food for three or six meals. By 
this time, the stomach will be free, and the system be 
] restored. I took the hint from seeing an idiot who 
J sometimes had turns of being unwell : at such times, 
he abstained entirely from food for about three days, 
in which time nature recovered herself, and he was 
well. This will frequently, and perhaps generally, 
answer instead of medicine, and is every way more 
pleasant. The most distinguished physicians have 
ever recommended this course. It is a part of the 
Mahometan and pagan s.ystems of religion, that the 
body should be recruited by frequent fastings. " Let 
a bull-dog be f6d in his infancy upon pap, Naples' bis- 
cuit, and boiled chicken ; let him be wrapped in flan- 
nel at night, sleep on a good feather-bed, and ride out 
in a coach for an airing, and if his posterity do not be- 
come short-hmbed, puny, and valetudinarian, it will be a 
wonder." If there is any one thing in the history of 
the celebrated Mathers which tends to account for 
their long lives, notwithstanding their astonishing labors 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 281 

Dr. Spring's prescription. Regularity of diet. 

as students, it is their frequent and stated days of fast- 
ing. A man of property, who had for years been 
abusing his stomach, at last found his heakh on a 
rapid decline. Nature could endure it no longer. 
He went to consult the celebrated Dr. Spring, of 
Watertown, Mass. He stated the symptoms of his 
case so clearly, that the learned physician could not 
mistake the nature of the disease. " I can cure you, 
sir," said he, "if you will follow my advice." The 
patient promised most implicitly to do so. " Now," 
says the doctor, " you must steal a horse." " What ! 
steal a horse ? " " Yes, — you must steal a horse. 
You will then be arrested, convicted, and placed in a 
situation where your diet and regimen will be such, 
that in a short time your heakh will be perfectly 
restored." 

2. Be regular in your diet. 

Nature loves regularity. She will permit you to 
dine at any hour you please, and will conform to your 
wishes in almost every thing, if you will only allow 
her to depend upon regularity. Some will tamper 
with themselves, and cultivate a morbid appetite, by 
eating something, if it be nothing of more worth than 
a handful of hot peppermints, between almost every 
meal. And then, at night, among the last things they 
do, they eat something before retiring to rest. That 
weariness and faintness which are the calls of nature 



282 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Simplicity in diet. Singular instance of one indulgence. 

for rest and sleep, are met by a new supply of food. 
One of the best remarks that Jefferson ever made, was, 
" that nobody ever repented having eaten too little." 
This is true to the letter, in regard to eating between 
meals. 1 do not wish to go into particulars ; but the 
habit of closing the day or evening by loading the 
stomach with fruit or food, will, sooner or later, visit 
you with fearful retribution. 

3. Be simple in your diet. 

In no profession of life are men likely to accom- 
plish any great and good enterprise, who are in any 
measure slaves to their palates. Buonaparte was tem- 
perate and simple to notoriety during his wonderful 
career as a general ; and Washington, during all his 
campaigns, was remarkable for the simplicity of his 
diet. Many times he was known to sit on his horse 
all day, making his dinner of bread and a slice of 
pork. The habits of the epicure are the last which 
the student should cherish. No one thing should be 
considered as essential to your comfort. A distin- 
guished lawyer used to congratulate himself that the 
only luxury in which he indulged, was good coffee in 
the morning : to make it to his taste, it amounted to 
just half as much ground coffee as he drank liquid. 
He shone brightly while he lived, but, without any dis- 
ease or sickness upon him, he sunk into the grave be- 
fore the age of forty. He died worn out, and seemed 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 2&3 

Stimulating drinks. 

an old man. Without wishing to descend to particular 
articles of food, it should be a general rule to be as 
simple as possible at the table. 

I cannot persuade myself that I need say a word on 
the subject of stimulating drinks; for I cannot believe 
that any one, who has self-respect enough to read a 
book designed for his improvement, will need a single 
caution on this point. Many classes of men are more 
frequently in the way of temptation from this quarter, 
than the student ; but no class has half the tempta- 
tion from within. There is a depression, and a sink- 
ing of the animal spirits, at times, which makes the 
desire for artificial stimulants almost irrepressible. 
And when the experiment has been once made, and 
the appetite once indulged, you are, probably, too 
completely in the hands of your enemy to be saved. 
Let it alone : never suffer a bottle, a decanter, a wine- 
glass, to come into your room, or to touch your lips. 
You could be pointed to men who, in their several 
professions, were brilliant while they hved, and whose 
tongues and pens were made eloquent by artificial 
stimulants. Their suns, almost without exception, set 
in clouds, and what they wrote will lie unread, at least 
till the memory of the authors has passed away. But 
if you could take the catalogue of our colleges, and 
hear the history of those who, by the star, are marked 
as having gone to the grave, you would be astonished 
at the number who were destroyed by this fatal in- 



284 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 



Bad effects upon the student. Economy. 



dulgence. The student who, even occasionally, uses 
strong drinks, may be marked as one who will soon 
cease to be in your way as a rival, and whose career 
will probably be marked, hereafter, only with shame 
and degradation. While I feel that I almost insult 
my reader by cautioning him on this subject, I must 
be permitted to say that the danger, to the student, is 
very great, and that, owing to the peculiar excitabili- 
ty of his nerves, and the relaxed state of his system, 
he probably receives treble the injury, by stimulants, 
that any other man does. 

I shall close this chapter with some remarks upon 
Economy. 

The great mass of our students are any thing but 
wealthy. There are many who, to render their 
standing in life respectable, go through college, when 
they have no expectation of relying upon themselves 
for support. Few of these lay any claim to the 
character of students. They rely upon their wealth 
for character and influence in life. Among these 
there are some who make fine scholars ; but, though 
their number is greater than we should expect, it is 
small. Those who are to inherit wealth, as a class, 
will never feel a pressure sufficient to make them se- 
vere students. And those who are seeking wealth, 
will never seek it in the way of study. If it be your 
object to become rich, you can find a thousand paths 
which will lead you to wealth, before that of study. 



THE STUDEiNT'S MANUAL. 285 

Indigence no injury to a student. 

No class of men in the world, considering the amount 
of capital expended in obtaining an education, and the 
amount of labor in their professions, are so poorly paid 
as professional men. It has been said, with empha- 
sis and truth, " that merely to obtain wealth, a man 
would be more likely to succeed, to begin with a 
wood-saw and axe, than with an education, which cost 
him ten years of hard study, and all the money he 
could borrow." A professional man, in this country, 
by untiring industry and economy, may have a com- 
petency, in most cases : but it will require the union 
of these two qualities to give it. You will see the 
necessity, then, of looking at the subject now, and of 
beginning life with those habits and views which will 
be safe. It is certainly true, that without economy 
no student will ever be rich; and, perhaps, it is equal- 
ly true, that with it very few will ever be poor 
through life. 

Set it down as an axiom, that poverty will do you 
no injury as a student. While multitudes have been 
ruined by wealth, few have ever been, by being poor ; 
for there is no pressure so direct, so constant, and so 
powerful, as that of poverty. Pythagoras long ago 
remarked, " that ability and necessity dwell near each 
other: " they usually inhabit the same building. The 
strong, gigantic character of Johnson was probably ow- 
ing, in a very great measure, to his poverty. He used 
to say, that Richard Savage and himself often walked 



286 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 



Johnson and Savage. 



Poverty of Savage. 



till four in the morning, — in the course of their con- 
versation, reforming the world, dethroning princes, 
giving laws, &:c., — till, fatigued with their legislative 
office, they began to want refreshment, but could not 
muster more than four-pence-half-penny between them. 
If, in a country where so much is thought to depend on 
hereditary rank and affluence, poverty only presses a 
man into greatness, it is no less true, certainly, that, 
in this country, it cannot injure you. Savage com- 
posed his most admired productions while walking over 
the corn-fields ; and then, stepping into the shops and 
begging a pen, he wrote on scraps of paper picked up 
in the street, what he had composed during his ram- 
bles. And that burning, indescribable passion for 
knowledge and high attainments which the student 
ought to have, can no more be quenched by his pov- 
erty, than the deep river will cease to roll on with its 
Durden of waters, because you cut off a mountain rill. 
Indeed, the circumstance of his being poor, is decided- 
ly favorable to the hope that he will stand high as a 
student ; for who does not love to rise above obsta- 
cles which, being no reproach to us by lying in our 
path, and which, being seen by all, only show the 
strength of character and of purpose which can carry 
us over them ? The discipline which poverty adds ta 
the character is often more severe than language can 
describe ; but the spirit that can bow to its yoke, and^ 
under it, carry forward all the burdens connected with 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 287 

Students should not be ashamed of poverty. 

Study, is the spirit to be hereafter feU and revered 
by others. The temptations to dissipation, to dress, 
and extravagance, to take the mind away from his 
books, are greatly lessened by his being poor. Look 
at the men on the stage of life, whose voice, whose 
pen, whose influence are felt the widest, and who are 
the ornaments of our country. Were many of them 
cradled in affluence 1 Did they acquire their strength 
on beds of roses? Or are they those who have made 
themselves by their own efforts, little aided by cir- 
cumstances that may be denominated fortuitous ? The 
most indigent student in the land need not fear the re- 
sults of such an investigation. 

Never be ashamed to have it known that you are 
poor, provided that your poverty is owing to no mis- 
management of yours. The remark, that " it is the 
eyes of other people which cost us so much," is so 
true, that, to attract those eyes, some will be extrava- 
gant, and others will be odd, in their appearance. 
" A celebrated old general used to dress in a fantastic 
manner, by way of making himself better known. It 
is true, people would say, ' Who is that old fool ?' but 
it is also true, that the answer was, "■ That is the fa- 
mous General , who took such a place.' No 

one ever stands high in the estimation of others, who 
goes beyond his means to adorn his person ; and 
while the student should, in all respects, study to be a 
gentleman in his deportment, it is no more desirable 



288 THE STUDENT^^faNUAL. 

Be anxious to keep out of debt. What to do if debts are necessary. 

for him to rely upon dress for character, than it is for 
a lady to adorn her face with chalk, which the rain 
will wash off, or with paints, which the sun will melt 
away. • 

As far as possible, Zceep out of deht. Nothing, short 
of loss of character, ever weighs down the spirits 
of a student, hke a load of accumulating debts. To 
say nothing about independent feeling, which he can 
no more enjoy, than an " empty bag can stand upright," 
there is an agony about it of which the stirring, ac- 
tive, bargain-making man cannot conceive. It haunts 
the soul day and night ; and the man who can pros- 
per in his studies while sinking in debt, must have 
feehngs peculiar to himself, and be made of " sterner 
stuff" than most men. All the efforts of denying 
yourself the luxuries, and even the comforts of life, 
are light, in comparison with the burden of owing. 

But perhaps you will say, that your circumstances 
are such, that you must relinquish your studies, at 
once and forever, or be in debt. What shall you do 
in such a case ? I reply that, if you must meet an 
evil, and carry a burden on your back for years, 
make every effort to have it as light as possible. You 
must be in debt, we will suppose. Try, then, and see 
how little you can be in debt, and possibly get along. 
In this case, in order to have the mind as free as you 
can, borrow your money at one place, and in sums so 
large, that you need have no small debts upon which 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 289 

• . Not to consult taste in purchases. 

you think, and over which you ache, every time you 
walk out. Keep a small book, in which you register 
all the items of your expense, and frequently look it 
over, and see if there be an item registered which you 
might have saved, by the most rigid economy. 

If the taste of a young man improves as it should 
during the progress of study, he will be in danger, 
when he makes purchases, of consulting his taste and 
fancy, rather than his judgment or his means. It is 
natural, if the taste be cultivated, to be unsatisfied 
with purchases which do not bear marks of having 
been prepared for a refined taste ; and such prepara- 
tions are always to be paid for dearly. You must re- 
sist this appetite, and consult your judgment, rather 
than your taste, or be very sparing in your purchases. 
I have known a poor student pay thirty or thirty-five 
dollars for a flute, when one seventh of the sum would 
have procured one of a tone every way as good ; and 
the instrument, inasmuch as he never made any thing 
more than an ordinary proficient upon it, every way 
as valuable to him. Pay as little to gratify your taste 
as you please, at present. You can at any future 
time do that. 

Buy nothing because it is oflfered cheap. The 
question should be, not. Is this article worth, and more 
than worth its price ? but. Can I not possibly get along 
without it ? For this purpose, keep away from places 
where cheap things are to be sold, such as auction- 
19 



290 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Temptation of buying books. 

rooms, and the like. '' He who buys what he does 
not need, will often need what he cannot buy." Nor 
can you expect to purchase any thing like all that 
you want — all that would add to your comfort. We 
must not only deny ourselves many things which 
would be pleasant, but also many which, at first view, 
seem essential. Beware of buying books. The 
temptation is great here. But there are obvious rea- 
sons why you should resist it. One is, that few books 
will, be sufficiently valuable to you to be worth the 
interest of your money. Another is, that every yeai; 
brings books more and more within your reach, as 
every edition of a valuable work is hkely to be 
cheaper than the preceding. You may think you get 
this and that volume cheap ; but, ten years hence, 
you will not think so. I could mention a gentleman 
who entered his profession under an embarrassment 
of four hundred dollars, for books. But before he 
could possibly pay the debt, the interest which he 
paid on the money would have purchased what w^ould- 
have been more valuable to him. Excepting your 
text-books, purchase but few books — perhaps some 
three or four volumes a year; — the Institution at 
which you study, will furnish you with books during 
term-time, and your own purchases will fill up the va- 
cations. It is amusing, in reading the correspondence 
of the amiable Covvper, to see him borrowing most 
of the books which he read, because his finances would 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 291 

Form habits of economy for life. 

not allow him to purchase, — and debts he could not 
endure. 

The habits of economy which you now form are 
for life ; and upon these habits are to depend the 
questions, whether your journey through life be one 
of independence and comfort, or of mortification and 
inquietude. If you will read over the curious docu- 
ment embracing the minute expenses of Washington, 
during the whole of the revolutionary war, and w^iich 
he kept with his own hand, you will be struck with his 
economical habits, and feel that such traits properly 
go into a great character. That is a mistaken notion 
v^^hich supposes that a want of economy is a mark of 
genius, and that profusion, extravagance, and debts, are 
inseparable from a man who is to be distinguished for 
mental attainments. Nothing is beneath you, w4iich 
will keep you from anxiety, and permit the mind to 
pursue the paths of knowledge unclogged and unfet- 
tered. While it should be impressed on the student, 
that " wealth cannot confer greatness, because nothing 
can make that great which the decrees of nature have 
ordained to be little ; that the bramble may be placed 
in a hot-bed, but can never become an oak ; " it should, 
at the same time, be equally impressed upon him, 
that he must feel prodigal of his mental powers who 
can strike for a high character, knowing that much of 
the strength of these powers is to be expended in the 
embarrassments of debts. As to beino; useful, there 



292 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 



Make your expenses a matter of conscience. 



ever has been, and ever will be, so much of disgrace 
connected with being in debt, that you cannot be as 
useful while you owe. If you must be irj debt, strive 
to make the bondage as light as possible, and seek for 
freedom the first hour that you can. 

Finally, one of the very best safeguards against the 
least waste of property, is to consider yourself account- 
able to God for all that you have, — that you must an- 
swer to him for its use or abuse ; and especially if you 
have not of your own, but live by borrowing of others, 
will he hold you most strictly accountable for all that 
you expend. While you have no items on your book 
at which you cannot look with pleasure, be careful, 
also, to have your conscience, on this subject, enlight- 
ened by a regard to the eye of your God. 



CHAPTER IX. 

DISCIPLINE OF THE HEART. 

My reader will have noticed; that I have said little 
or nothing thus far on the high subject of the moral 
feelings. The omission was designed ; not that I 
deem this subject of small importance to the student, 
but because I wished to present each topic by it- 
self, hoping thereby that the light , which fell upon 
each would be stronger, and that thus each would make 
a deep and a distinct impression. The two chapters 
which now remain of this little book are, in my view, 
by far the most important of any ; and I cannot but 
hope that they will receive the attention of the reader 
in proportion as they are important. 

One of the first steps to be taken, if you would 
have a character that will stand by you in prosperity 
and in adversity, in life and in death, is to fortify your 
mind with fixed principles. 

There is no period in life in which the heart is so 
much inclined to skepticism and infidelity as in youth. 
Not that young men are infidels, but the mind is toss- 
ed from doubt to doubt like a light boat leaping from 
wave to wave. There is no positive settling down into 
deism or infidelity, but the heart is so full of doubt- 



294 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Infidel notions. What sort of men are infidels ? 

ing, that the mind has no position, in morals or religion, 
fortified. If the restraints of education are so far 
thrown off as to allow you to indulge in sin which is in 
any way disgraceful if known, you will then easily 
become an infidel. " The nurse of infidelity is sen- 
suality. Youth are sensual. The Bible stands in 
their way. It prohibits the indulgence of ' the lust 
of the flesh, the lust of the eye, and the pride of hfe.' 
But the young mind loves these things, and therefore 
it hates the Bible, which prohibits them. It is prepar- 
ed to say, ' If any man will bring me arguments against 
the Bible, I will thank him : if not, I will invent them.' 
I never gathered from infidel writers, when an avowed 
infidel myself, any solid difficulties, which were not 
brought to my mind by a very young child of my 
own. ' Why was sin permitted ? — What an insignifi- 
cant world is this to be redeemed by the incarnation 
and death of the Son of God ! — Who can believe 
that so few will be saved ? ' Objections of this kind, 
in the mind of reasoning young persons, prove to me 
that they are the growth of fallen nature. As to infi- 
del arguments, there is no weight in them. They are 
jejune and refuted. Infidels are not themselves con- 
vinced by them. What sort of men are infidels ? 
They are loose, fierce, overbearing men. There 
is nothing in them like sober and serious inquiry. 
They are the wildest fanatics on earth. Nor have 
they agreed among themselves on any scheme of truth 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 295 

Testimony of one who had been an infidel. 

and felicity. Look at the need and necessities of 
man. ' Every pang of grief tells a man that he needs 
a helper ; but infidelity provides none. And what can 
its schemes do for you in death ? ' Examine your con- 
science. Why is it that you listen to infidelity ? Is 
not infidelity a low, carnal, wicked game ? Is it not 
the very picture of the prodigal, — ' Father, give me 
the portion of goods which falleth to me ? ' fVhy, why 
will a man be an infidel ? Draw out the map of the 
road of infidelity. It will lead you to such stages, at 
length, as you could never suspect." 

This is the testimony of one who had faithfully 
travelled the road of infidelity ; a man whose testimo- 
ny would have rung through the world, had he con- 
tinued a low, grovelling, sensual infidel ; but whose tes- 
timony has never been noticed by infidels, since he 
became a better man, and an eminent Christian. I 
will here put it to my reader to say, whether he can 
recollect, in all he has known of men from history or 
observation, a great, discriminating and efficient mind, 
— a mind that has blessed the world in any degree, — • 
which was thoroughly imbued with infidel principles ? 
Take the writings of such a mind, and you will be 
astonished at the vulgarity, sophistry, puerility, and 
weakness, which are continually marking its progress. 
Suppose him a politician. In the unpublished lan- 
guage of a young friend of mine, '' it may be said that 
his religion has nothing to do with his political opin- 



296 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

No safety in opinions if religious views are loose. 

ions. But this is not clear : it is justly remarked by 
some writer, I know not whom, ' that the mind which 
has been warped and biased upon one great subject, is 
not safely trusted upon another.' And can we say of 
a man, ' It is true that the evidences of the Christian 
religion, which carry along with them the soundest 
judgments, and the most profound minds, did not meet 
a reception in his? It is true that his intellect did not 
lead him to such conclusions on this subject as we 
consider to be the necessary conclusions of a balanced 
mind, — but yet, in politics, he was great, deep, search- 
ing, divine ! " Learnmg, poetry, and literature, walk 
hand in hand under the light of the gospel. They 
are destined to do so ; and no where else on earth can 
they now be found. It is absolutely impossible for 
any mind, amid all this light, to veil itself in infidelity, 
and expect to be known, revered, or influential among 
men. Were there no warpings of the. mind, and no 
outrages committed upon it, when it was led to em- 
brace infidelity, still it asks too much of its fellows, 
when it demands admittance to their communion, and 
asks permission to reach other minds, when it pretends 
to pour nothing but the cold fight of a December 
evening upon them. There is so little of sympathy 
between the mind of an infidel and the enfightened, 
Christian part of the community, that, if he hopes to 
have any influence upon men, it must be upon those 
who have already made sliipwreck of character and 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 297 



Settle your religious views early. 

hopes, and who will hear him speak or write, because 
he holds out the last, faint glimmering of hope to them, 
ere they are tlirust off upon the dark waters, upon 
which nothing else sheds a ray of light. 

Should you be among those who have no fixed 
principles in morals and religion, for your own peace 
and usefulness, I beg you to settle this subject at once 
and forever. Has God ever spoken to man ? If so, 
when and how ? These are the most important ques- 
tions ever asked. And they should be answered and 
settled, 50 that the mind may have something to rest 
upon so firm that nothing shall move it. " We are 
mere mites creeping on the earth, and oftentimes con- 
ceited mites too." We can easily unsettle things, but 
can erect nothing. We can pull down a church, but, 
without aid, cannot erect a hovel. The earlier in 
life you settle your principles, the firmer, more mature, 
more influential, will your character be. Search the 
Bible, and try it as you would gold in the furnace. If 
you doubt its inspiration, sit down to its examination 
with candor, and with an honest desire to know what 
is truth : let the examination be as thorough as you 
please ; but, when/ once made, let it be settled for- 
ever. You will then have something to stand upon. 
You will have an unerring standard by which to 
regulate your conduct, your conscience, and your 
heart. The ship that outrides the storm with the 
greatest ease, is the one which has her anchors out, 



298 . THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Resolutions of Edwards. 

her cables stretched^ and her sails furled, before the 
strength of the storm has reached her ; and the navi- 
gator, who must stand at the helm through the long, 
dark night, does not wait till that night comes, ere he 
sees that his compass is boxed and properly hung. He 
who has his religious principles early fixed, has noth- 
ing to do but at once, and continually, to act upon 
them — to carry them out in practice. He has not the 
delays and the vexations of distrust and doubt every 
little while, when he stops to examine and settle a 
principle. Every reader will be convinced of this, 
who will read over the seventy resolutions of Presi- 
dent Edwards, all of which were formed before he was 
twenty years old, and the most important of them be- 
fore he was nineteen. No mind could form, and act 
upon, such principles from early life, without becom- 
ing great and efficient. I cannot refrain from select- 
ing a few of these as a specimen. 

" 1. Resolved, that I will do whatsoever I think to 
be most to the glory of God, and my own good, profit, 
and pleasure, in the whole of my duration, without 
any consideration of the time, whether now, or never so 
many myriads of ages hence. Resolved, to do what- 
ever I think to be my duty, and most for the good 
and advantage of mankind in general. Resolved, so 
to do, whatever difficulties I meet with, how many 
soever, and how great soever." 

" 4. Resolved, never to do any manner of thing, 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 299 

Resolutions. 

whether in soul or body, less or more, but what tends 
to the glary of God, nor he, nor suffer it, if I can 
possibly avoid it. 

'' 5. Resolved, never to lose one moment of time, 
•but to improve it in the most profitable way I possi- 
bly can. 

" 6. Resolved, to live with all my might while 1 
do live. 

^' 7. Resolved, never to do any thing, which 1 
should be afraid to do, if it were the last hour of 
my life." 

" 20. Resolved, to maintain the strictest temper- 
ance in eating and drinking. * 

"21. Resolved, never to do any thing, which, if I 
should see in another, I should count a just occasion 
to despise him for, or to think any way the more 
meanly of him." 

^•'34. Resolved, in narrations never to speak any 
thing but the pure and simple verity." 

"46. Resolved, never to allow the least measure of 
any fretting or uneasiness at my father or mother. 
Resolved, to suffer no effects of it, so much as in the 
least alteration of speech, or motion of my eye, and 
to be especially careful of it with respect to any of our 
family." 

The whole of these seventy resolutions are every 
way worthy the attention and the imitation of every 
young man. And while this example is before you. 



300 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL 

Resolutions of a distinguished man. 

allow me to present a few brief resolutions which 
were forme"d by a young man before he entered col- 
lege, and which formed a character known and rever- 
ed widely, and whose death was sincerely lamented. 

" For the future direction of my life, I resolve, 

" 1 . That I will make religion my chief concernment. 

"2. That I will never be afraid or ashamed to 
speak in defence of religion. 

*' 3. That I will make it my daily practice to read 
some part of the Holy Scriptures, that I may become 
acquainted with the will of God, and be quickened 
and comforted, and qualified to serve Christ and pro- 
mote the interests of his kingdom in the world. 

" 4. That I will every day reflect upon death and 
eternity. 

" 5. That I will daily pray to God in secret. 

" 6. That, upon all proper occasions, I will reprove 
vice, and discountenance it, and, to my utmost, en- 
courage virtue and religion. 

" 7. That I will dispute only for hght, or to com- 
municate it. 

"8. That I will receive light wherever and how- 
ever offered. 

" 9. That I will give up no principle before I am 
convinced of its absurdit}^ or bad consequences. 

" 10. That I will never be ashamed to confess a 
fault to an equal or to an inferior. 

"11. That I will make it a rule to do no action, at 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 301 

A common prejudice among students. Religion exalts the mind. 

any time or place, of which action I should not be 
willing to be a witness against myself hereafter." 

It is. frequently the case that young men have an 
idea that there is something in the cultivation of the 
heart, and in the restraints of rehgion, which degrades 
or cramps the soul ; that a mind which is naturally 
noble and lofty, will become grovelling and contract- 
ed by submitting to moral restraints. This is a mere 
prejudice ; and it does little good to deny a prejudice. 
But go into that library, and examine the shelves, and 
see who are those who have penned what will be 
immortal, and influence other minds as long as earth 
shall endure. In almost every instance, the work 
which will hold its place the longest, was dictated by a 
Christian heart. The loftiest minds, the most cultiva- 
ted intellects, and the most solid judgments, have bowed 
at the altar of God, and have been quickened and 
ennobled by the waters which flow from his mount ; 
and if we go up from man to those higher orders of 
beings who compose " the presence " of the Eternal, 
we shall find them, after having shouted for joy over 
the creation of this world, when the morning stars 
sang together ; after having watched the providences 
of God, and seen empires rise and fall; after having 
hung around the good in all their wanderings on earth,^ 
still studying the Gospel, to have their views enlarg- 
ed, their conceptions of the infinite wisdom expanded, 
and still desiring to look into these things. May 



302 THE siude?;t's manual. 

Means of disciplining- the heart. First suggestion. 

not the sublime idea of the modesty of these " angelic 
students "*rebuke the ignorance, the darkness, and 
consummate pride, of those who feel that their great- 
ness would be diminished by bowing to the gospel of 
God? The angels diligently look into the myste- 
ry of the gospel ; and they are the companions and 
fellow-students of all who thus study it. 

By disciplining the heart, I mean, bringing it into 
subjection to the will of God, so that you can best 
honor him, and do most for the well-being of men. I 
shall suggest some means by which the heart may be 
disciplined and the feelings cultivated. 

1. Let it he your immediate and constant aim to 
malce every event subservient to cultivating the heart. 

We are in danger of acknowledging the importance 
of this subject, but at the same tin^e of putting it off 
to a convenient season. You suppose your present cir- 
cumstances are not favorable. There are ^'f^culties 
now, but you are looking forward to the time when 
things will be different. Your studies will not hurry 
you so much ; they will become much' easier ; and 
you will have conveniences which you have not at 
the present time. But when you shall go to another 
place, or commence a new study, or enter upon a more 
pleasant season of the year, or have a new companion 
in your room, then you can begin to take care of 
your heart, and have intercourse with God. But you 
greatly misjudge. Every thing, every circumstance 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 303 

Every thing' may contribute to it. 

in our condition, is designed by Infinite Wisdom as 
a part of our moral discipline ; and He Who watch- 
es the sparrow when she alights, and directs her 
how and where to find the grain of food, he directs 
all things relating to your situation ; and he designs 
to have every thing contribute to your moral improve- 
ment. There is not a temptation which meets you, 
nor , a vexation which harasses you, nor a trouble 
which depresses you, but it was all designed for your 
good. Do not put off, and plead that the path in 
which your Heavenly Father is leading you is differ- 
ent from what you would have chosen, and therefore 
you are excusable for not doing his will. No prin- 
ciple of action is of any worth, unless it leads you 
continually to take care of the heart. I have spoken 
already of the difficulty in subduing the mind, so as to 
make study easy. You will find the heart no more 
readily subdued. Every indulgence of vice, every 
neglect of duty, strengthens the habits and propensi- 
ties to do wrong and to go astray. 

Should the hand of Providence strike down your 
best earthly friend, you v*^ould feel that you were call- 
ed upon to make the event contribute to moral cul- 
ture. But do you feel that it is best to wait for such 
providences ? — to tempt God thus to visit you with 
afflictions? Every event under his government is de- 
signed to do you good ; and he who does not make it 
his daily business to cultivate his heart, will be in 



304 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Second suggestion. Cultivate the conscience. 

great danger of never doing it. You cannot do it at 
any time, and in a short period. A virtuous and holy 
character is not built up in a day : it is the work of 
a long life. Begin the work at once, and make it as 
really a part of your duties daily to cultivate the 
heart, as it is to take care of the body, or to cultivate 
the intellect. 

2. Make it a part of your daily hahits to cul- 
tivate your conscience. 

A man never became intemperate or profane at 
once. He never became a proficient in any sin by a 
single leap. The youth first hears the oath, blushes 
as he falters out his first profane expression, and goes 
on, step by step, till he rolls " sin as a sweet morsel 
under his tongue." It is so with any sin. In this 
way, the conscience is blunted and the heart harden- 
ed. In this way, too, the conscience is recovered, 
and made susceptible to divine impressions. Were 
you seeking only for a powerful motive to impel you 
onward in your studies, and were you regardless of 
your moral culture, still I would urge you, on this 
ground alone, to cultivate conscience most assiduously. 
I will tell you why. 

There are but few men who can be brought to task 
their powers so as to achieve much by motives drawn 
from this world only. With the mass of educated 
men this is true. Wealth cannot bribe to steady, un- 
wearied efforts ; ambition may lay an iron hand on 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 305 



Use of a cultivated conscience. Dlustrations. 

the sou], but it cannot, excepting here and there, do 
it with a grasp sufficient to keep it in action : the soft 
whispers of pleasure can do nothing towards shaicing 
off the indolence and sluggishness of nnan; and fame, 
with a silver trumpet, calls in vain. These motives 
can reach only a few. But conscience is a motive 
which can be brought to bear upon all, and can be 
cultivated till she calls every energy, every suscepti- 
bility, every faculty of the soul into constant, vigor- 
ous, powerful action. Every other motive, when 
analyzed, is small, mean, contemptible, and such as 
you despise when you see it operating upon others. 
The soul of man is ashamed to confess itself a slave 
to any other power. But this is not all : any other 
motive soon loses its power. Trials, and misfortunes, 
and disappointments, damp, kill any other governing 
motive. But this is not so of the man who acts from 
conscience. You can crush him only by destroying 
his life. Shut him up in the prison, and he writes 
the Epistle to the Hebrews — a work which is yet 
to do wonders, I doubt not, when the " scattered, 
peeled " sons of Israel are called in. Shut him up 
in prison, and his conscience arouses him, and carries 
him onward to exertions unthought of before. The 
cold walls of his dungeon grow warm while he de- 
scribes the Pilgrim's Progress up to eternal day, and 
scatters the food of angels over the earth ; — while he 
describes the Saint's Everlasting Rest, and actually 
20 



306 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

How the greatest efforts of the mind can be called forth. 

does more for the good of man, under the pressure of 
conscience, in adversity, than during all the days of 
his prosperity. 

Only fix the impression on the mind so that it will 
be abiding, that we are accountable to God for all 
that we accomplish, and the amount of effort and 
success will be almost unmeasured. Connect the 
immeasurable demands of eternity with every effort 
to conquer sin, to subdue your appetites and pas- 
sions, and thus make the soul and body more disci- 
plined instruments of doing good, together with every 
noble resolution, and every exertion, whether it be 
for life or for a moment, — and you will not do small 
things ; you will not walk through life unfelt, un- 
known, and you will not go down to the grave un- 
wept. Every unholy desire that you conquer ; 
every thought that you treasure up for future use ; 
every moment that you seize as it flies and stamp 
with something good, which it may carry to the judg- 
ment-seat j every influence which you exert upon the 
world for the honor of God or the good of man, — 
all, all is not only connected with the approbation of 
God and the rewards of eternal ages, but all aids you 
to strike for higher and nobler efforts still, till you 
are enabled to achieve what will astonish even your- 
self. Think over the lonor list of those men who 
have lived and acted under the direct and continued 
influence of a conscience which chained every exer- 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 307 

Thoughts at a grave. We must meet with temptations. - 

tlon and every thought directly to the throne of God. 
Go, stand at the grave of one of these men ; and you 
will go away musing and heart-smitten, to think that 
he finished his work, and did it so soon, and went 
home to his rest in the morning of life, while you 
have never even contemplated doing but little good. 
The stone over the dust of such a one will soon crum- 
ble away ; but the light which surrounds that grave 
will grow brighter and brighter, till seen the earth 
over, because his faculties were under the continued 
direction and control of conscience. 

Had I no other aim, then, than merely to excite 
you to high and noble enterprise, to make great ef- 
forts while you live, that motive which I would select 
as incomparably superior to all others, to lead you to 
effort, is a cultivated, sanctified conscience. But I 
have an aim higher than even this, in urging you to 
cultivate your conscience. 

The path of hfe is beset with temptations. This is 
a part of our moral discipline. We must meet them 
every day : we cannot go round them, nor go past 
them, without being solicited by them ; and nothing 
but a conscience increasingly tender will enable us to 
meet and overcome them. For example, you will, 
every week, if not every day, find seasons when you 
are tempted to be idle, to waste your time. There is 
no motive at hand which will arouse you. These frag- 
ments of time are scattered all along your path. 



308 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 



Examples of temptations. 



Nothing but a cultivated conscience will enable you to 
save them. But this will. It cannot be created and 
brought to bear upon you when indolence has seized 
you. No, it must be done before. 

You will often be tempted to smite with the tongue. 
The company indulge freely in their remarks upon 
absent characters. Opportunities occur in which you 
can throw in a word or two handsomely, and there- 
fore keenly. You can gain credit by the shrewdness 
with which you judge of character, and for your in- 
sight into human nature. No motive of kindness, of 
politeness, no sense of justice, will now avail to meet 
this temptation : nothing but a tender conscience will 
do it. 

You are a student. Your health may not be good, 
— ^your nerves are easily excited, — ^you are easily 
thrown off your guard, speak quickly, and evidently 
with a great loss of self-respect, which aids in in- 
creusing your ill-humor and your tartness. You can- 
not reason yourself or shame yourself into a good 
temper: a cultivated conscience is the only thing 
which will sweeten the temper. 

In the course of your hfe, you will be making bar- 
gains, and be more or less in habits of dealing with 
men. You may intend to be an honorable and an 
honest man; but you will be strongly tempted, at 
times, to cheapen what you buy, and over-praise 
what you sell, or to do as you would not that 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 309 

Examples continued. Third suggestion. 

Others should do unto you, unless you are under the 
direction of a clear, discriminating conscience. 

You know how much we esteem our character in 
the sight of men. Many will fight for it, and quarrel 
for it, and prefer death a thousand times to the loss of 
character, in the eyes of their fellow-men. This love 
of character is as it should be. But what is it to be 
judged of men, in comparison to being judged of God ? 
Of what consequence is it what men say of us, or think 
of us, in comparison to what God thinks of us ? Who, 
that believes in the justice of God, and in the immortal- 
ity of the soul, would not prefer to have his approbation 
to that of, the universe besides ? But you can never 
gain his approbation ; you can never stand fair in his 
sight ; you can never have him for your friend, unless 
you have a heart that is continually under the disci- 
pline of a well-regulated, cultivated conscience. 

3. Avoid temptations. 

It is wisdom in beings as frail as we are, not only 
to use every possible means to overcome sins which 
beset us, but, as far as possible, to avoid meeting them. 
If you are on a journey, with a high object in view to 
be attained, and you may be beset with enemies, you 
will feel anxious, not merely to be so well guarded 
that they cannot overcome you, but, as far as possi- 
ble, to avoid meeting them. There is something in 
the simple piety of Baxter which pleases us, when 
he gravely tells us what a blessing he received in 



310 » THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Avoid temptation. Easily-besetting- temptations. 

narrowly escaping getting a place at court in the early 
part of his life. We all believe in a superintending 
Providence ; and we know that many of the best 
men who have ever lived, have been not merely shut 
out from wealth, and station, and honors, but made 
objects of suffering, and even of derision to the rest 
of mankind. The hand that covers them seems 
rough, and frequently oppressive. Bat multitudes, 
who have been ornaments to society, and blessings to 
their species, and who, after having done their work 
here, have gone to the rewards of the perfect, have 
owed their character chiefly to the fact, that their cir- 
cumstances shielded them from temptations. Were 
you to mark any number of young men in the same 
class, who you would fear will accomphsh little or 
nothing for the good of man, you would be likely to 
select those who, by their situations, are peculiarly ex- 
posed to temptations. 

There are said to be certain peculiar sins which 
easily beset every man ; and there are certainly temp- 
tations which are peculiar to every one. Into some 
you fall oftener and more easily than into others. 
Some will meet you in one place, and some in anoth- 
er ; some in one shape, and some in another. It is 
important, for any improvement in moral character, 
to know where you are peculiarly exposed; and at 
those points set a strong and wakeful guard. 

There are certain individuals with whom you can- 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 311 

• ^— 

Companions. Conversation. 

not associate, with whom you cannot spend an hour, 
without hearing things said, and receiving impressions, 
which tend to lower your standard of honorable feel- 
ing, and of purity of heart. Their society may, in 
many respects, be enchanting, their conversation be- 
witching, while, at the same time, there may be a 
subtle poison which will gradually destroy your moral 
sense. You love to walk with some of these ; you 
love to visit them in their rooms; and you hope you 
may have some good influence upon them. Perhaps 
you will have ; but the danger is all on your side. 
The impressions which the soul receives, and the 
modes of feeling into which the heart is gradually led, 
will not be likely to startle you at first, even though 
their end is moral death. How can you hope to 
strengthen your moral habits, and grow in character, 
if you frequently yield to the temptation of conversa- 
tion which deadens the moral sensibilities ? Here is 
one plain temptation ; and the way to grow in purity 
of heart is, not to frequent such company, and there 
try to throw some feeble influence in favor of virtue, 
and then go away, and lament and pray over the in- 
stances in which you yielded to temptation ; but 
keep clear of the danger; break off* from all asso- 
ciates whose influence is against the great object of 
disciplining the heart. 

Some sins meet you at particular seasons. For 
example, you notice that, after study, or after tea, or 



312 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 



Particular seasons. Particular associations. 

at some particular hour of the day, you have less 
patience than usual. You are inclined to be irritable, 
or you are low in spirits. You are in danger of cul- 
tivating a bad habit of feeling and speaking, and of 
trying the temper of others. Here you are beset at 
a particular time of the day ; set a watch over your- 
self, and avoid the danger. You can easily see the 
rock, for it is above the waves. 

At some particular time of the day, or in some 
particular situations, you find yourself exposed to de- 
basing and corrupting thoughts. They fill the mind 
and crowd out every thing that is good. These asso- 
ciations arise only when you are alone, or when you 
are conversing on some particular topics, or when 
something is recalled by the memory. Can you hope 
to conquer these legions, and drive away all these un- 
clean birds, by any other means than by fleeing from 
them ? As there are some demons which, it is said, 
cannot be cast out except by prayer and fasting, so 
these can be overcome only by avoiding and resist- 
ing them, when they approach the heart, and by the 
most sincere prayer when they have once entered it. 

Suppose you were attempting to grow in moral 
character and worth, and yet should, novi^ and then, 
indulge yourself in reading a bad book. The book 
seems to have fallen into your hand by accident. 
You do not often read it, but sometimes look into it ; 
or, if you do not own it, some one may, who offers to 



THE STUDEiNT'S MANUAL. 313 



Vile reading. Little failings. 



loan it to you. Here is a temptation thrown before 
you. You may never know what that book contains, 
if you do not now learn it; and should you not know 
what such books contain, in order to warn others 
against their influence ? I reply, Beware ; and yield 
not to this temptation. One yielding, when thus 
tempted, may be your ruin ; or, if it be not, it will 
take you a long time to recover from the mischiefs 
which you are bringing upon yourself. Temptations 
should be met at a distance : if you see the bird once 
gaze upon the serpent, she begins to fly round and 
round, and at every revolution coming nearer and 
nearer, till she falls into the mouth of the devourer. 

You have what are usually called " failings," or 
" little failings." By a proper attention and study 
of yourself, you can know what these are ; but if 
you find any difficulty in discovering, you have only 
to ask your near neighbor, and he will name many 
which you never had claimed as yours. Now, what 
are these failings, except places at which you are con- 
stantly yielding to temptations ? And Jiow can you 
hope to cure, yourself of them, except by' avoiding 
them ? Suppose you are naturally of a turn of mind 
which is bold, impetuous,- and forward. It leads you 
to make remarks that are rash, and to do things which 
you ought not. Should you not avoid every tempta- 
tion to it ? If Peter be naturally impetuous, and in 
danger of striking at the first head which he meets, 



314 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Natural temperament. Beware of temptations to which you incline. 

ought he not to leave his sword behind him ? You 
may be of such a temperament, that all company ex- 
cites your animal spirits, and you arc so easily elated, 
that you lose your balance at the time, and have an 
equal degree of depression following it. In this case, 
are you wise to allow yourself to run into temptation ? 
Suppose a man have an innate propensity to be dis- 
honest, so that he can hardly touch the property of 
others without appropriating something of it to him- 
self; can he hope to clear his hands and his heart so 
long as he continues in the place of temptation? 
Should Judas carry the bag, when he has fully proved 
to himself that he cannot do it without stealing from 
it ? Should a passionate man, whose temper is easily 
excited, throw himself in situations in which he will 
certainly be tempted to anger ? Whatever be your 
weakness, or the spot at which you fall, beware of it, 
and shun it. I once knew a gifted young man, who, 
in very early life, had indulged a love for ardent 
spirit, which was almost fatal. Under the influence 
of conscience and religion, he finally conquered him- 
self, and for years did not taste a drop. In a con- 
versation with him on the subject, he told me that so 
strong was his appetite, thit, even then, the sight of 
a decanter was painful ; and that, whenever he heard 
liquor running from the cask in a store, he immedi- 
ately ran out as fast as possible, whether his errand 
was or was not done. His safety was only in flying. 



TirE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 315 

Example of a subdued temper. 

So It Is In regard to any temptation. The best way 
to overcome sin, is to flee from its approach. He 
who tampers with a temptation is akeady under its 
power. The Hon will frequently let his victim move, 
and will play with it before he crushes it. 

4. Watch over your temper. 

There is much said about the natural disposition and 
temper of men ; and the fact, that any one has a tem- 
per which is unhappy and unpleasant, Is both account- 
ed and apologized for, by saying that his temper is 
"naturally" unpleasant. It is a comfortable feeling 
to lay as much blame upon nature as we can ; but the 
difficulty is, that the action, to use a law term, will not 
lie. No one has a temper naturally so good that It 
does not need attention and cultivation ; and no one 
has a temper so bad, but that, by proper culture, It 
may become pleasant. One of the best-disciplined 
tempers ever seen was that of a gentleman who was, 
naturally, quick, irritable, rash, and violent ; but, by 
having the care of the sick, and especially of deranged 
people, he so completely mastered himself, that he 
was never known to be thrown off his guard. The 
difference In the happiness which is received or bestow- 
ed by the man who guards his temper, and that by the 
man who does not. Is immense. There is no misery 
so constant, so distressing, and so intolerable to others, 
as that of having a disposition which is your master, 
and which is continually^ fretting itself. There are 



316 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Temper may be cultivated. Roger Sherman. His patience. 

corners enough, at every turn in life, against which we 
may run, and at which we may break out in impa- 
tience, if we choose. 

No one can have an idea of the benefits to be de- 
rived from a constant supervision and cultivation of the 
temper, till he try them ; not that you will certainly cul- 
tivate the moral feelings, if the temper be subdued ; but 
you cerfainly will not, if it be not subdued. . Few men 
ever had, naturally, a more unmanageable disposition 
than he who, at forty, frequently appears among the 
most amiable of men. Look at Roger Sherman. He 
made himself master of his temper, and cultivated it 
as a great business in life. There are one or two in- 
stances which show this part of his character in a light 
that is beautiful. He was, one day, after having re- 
ceived his highest honors, sitting and reading in his 
parlor. A roguish student, in a room close by, held 
a looking-glass in such a position as to pour the re- 
flected rays of the sun directly in Mr. Sherman's face. 
He moved his chair, and the thing was repeated. A 
third time the chair was moved, but the looking-glass 
still poured the sun in his eyes. He laid aside his 
book, went to the window, and many witnesses of the 
impudence expected to hear the ungentlemanly stu- 
dent severely reprimar^ded . He raited the window 
gently, and then — shut the window-blind I I can- 
not forbear adducing another instance of the power 
which he had acquired over himself. 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 317 

Remarkable example of a subdued temper. 

" He was naturally possessed of strong passions ; 
but over these he at length obtained an extraordinary 
control. He became habitually calm, sedate, and self- 
possessed. Mr. Sherman was one of those men who 
are not ashamed to maintain the forms of religion in 
his family. One morning, he called them together, as 
usual, to lead them in prayer to God; the 'old fam- 
ily Bible' was brought out and laid on the table. 
Mr. Sherman took his seat, and beside him placed 
one of his children, a small child — a child of his old 
age ; the rest of the family were seated round the 
room ; several of these were now grown up. Be- 
sides these, some of the tutors of the college were 
boarders in the family, and were present at the time 
alluded to. His aged and now superannuated mother 
occupied a corner of the room, opposite the place 
where the distinguished judge of Connecticut sat. At 
length, he opened the Bible and began to read. The 
child, which was seated beside him, made some little 
disturbance, upon which Mr. Sherman paused, and told 
it to be still. Again he proceeded ; but again he paus- 
ed, to reprimand the little oflfender, whose playful dis- 
position would scarcely permit it to be still. At this 
time, he gently tapped its ear. The blow, if it might 
be called a blow, caught the attention of his aged 
mother, who now, with some effort, rose from her 
seat, and tottered across the room. At length, she 
reached the chair of Mr. Sherman, and, in a moment 



318 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Example continued. Necessity of attending to the temper. 

most unexpected to him, she gave him a blow on the 
ear, with all the power she could summon. ' TJiere,^ 
said she, '^you strike your child^ and I will strike 



rnme i 



(C 



r 



For a moment, the blood was seen rushing to the 
face of Mr. Sherman ; but it was only for a moment, 
when all was calm and mild as usual. He paused — 
he raised his spectacles — he cast his eye upon his 
mother — again it fell upon the book, from which he 
had been reading. Not a word escaped him; but 
again he calmly pursued the service, and soon after 
sought, in prayer, an ability to set an example before 
his household, which should be worthy of their imita- 
tion. Such a victory was worth more than the proud- 
est victory ever achieved in the field of battle." 

Suppose, at the close of the day, as you look back 
upon what you have done and said, you see that, 
in ' one instance, you answered a companion short 
and tartly ; in another, you broke out in severe in- 
vective upon one who was absent ; in another, you 
were irritated and vexed at some trifle, though you 
kept it to yourself, and felt the corrosions of an ill 
temper without betraying your feelings, otherwise than 
by your countenance. Can you now look back upon 
the day with any degree of comfort? Can you feel 
that you have made any advancement in subduing 
yourself, so that you can look at yourself with cheer- 
fulness and respect J during this day ? And if this be 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 319 

Example of Sir Walter Raleigh. 

SO, from day to day, and from week to week, can you 
expect that your heart will be more and more sub- 
dued ? You may be sure, that no one, who so gives 
way to his temper, during every day, that, at night, he 
has to reproach himself for it, can be growing in moral 
excellence. 

You need not be discouraged in your attempts to 
correct a quick, an irritable and a bad temper, even 
though, at first, unsuccessful. Success, on this point, 
will certainly follow exertion. It is one mark of a 
great, as well as a good man, to have a command over 
the temper. Sir Walter Raleigh was challenged by 
a hot-headed young man ; and, because he coolly re- 
fused to fight, the young man proceeded to spit in his 
face, in public. Sir Walter took his handkerchief, 
and, calmly wiping his face, merely made this reply : — 
*' Young man, if I could as easily wipe your blood 
from my conscience as I can this injury from my face, 
I would this moment take away your hfe." The great 
Dr. Boerhaave was always unmoved by any provo- 
cation, though the practice of medicine is by no means 
well calculated to soothe the nerves. Upon being 
asked how he obtained such a mastery over himself, he 
stated, that " lie was naturally quick of resentment, but 
that he had, by dally prayer and meditation, at length 
attained to this mastery over himself." 

You will have strong temptations to irritability of 
temper ; for it is impossible to be a student, and not 



320 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 



Irritability of the temper. Fifth suggestion. 



have the system in such a state that little vexations 
will jar upon your nerves. But the indulgence 
of such a temper will not merely mar your present 
peace, injure you in the eyes of all who know you, 
hurt your usefulness, hasten on a premature old age, 
but it is fatal to that peace of mind which consists in 
" a pure conscience." The heart sickens in despond- 
ency, when, at the close of the day, you go to the 
closet and have to reflect, that your temper is still un- 
subdued ; and that, while you ought to be above being 
moved by the little "troubles which meet you, they 
constantly oppress you. If you now have no more of 
character than to give way to your disposition, while 
in the retirement of the study, what will you do when 
the multipHed vexations of active hfe come upon you ? 

5. Be careful to improve your thoughts when 
alone. 

There will be seasons recurring ffequently, when 
you must be alone. You will walk alone, or you 
will sit in the evening shade alone, or you will lie 
on a sleepless pillow alone. Every student ought 
not only to expect this, but to desire it ; and never, if 
faithful to himself, need he be less alone than when 
alone. The appetites and passions are so apt to ram- 
ble, that we esteem him to be good at self-government 
who subdues them ; but the thoughts are but little be- 
hind in giving the conscientious man trouble. The 
two difficulties which will msst you most consts?.tly, 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 321 

Improvement of thoughts when alone. Cautions. 

are, to keep the thoughts from wandering, and from 
wandering in forbidden paths. What is vain and vis- 
ionary will easily steal in upon you when alone, and 
you will soon become a most wretched companion to 
yourself, and your own tempter. You can easily get 
into the habit of looking back, and recalling what you 
have read or studied, and examining what way-marks 
you have put up, or of reviving the memory of informa- 
tion and knowledge which you have received by con- 
versation ; but if you do not cultivate this habit, there 
will be one at your elbow ever ready to enter the 
heart and become the strong man of the house. The 
memory and the judgment may both be cultivated by 
employing your thoughts upon whatever you have 
been studying or reading for the last twenty-four hours. 
Your process will be, first, to recall any thing valuable 
which you have met with, and then classify it, and 
weigh it, and judge as to the occasions in which j^ou 
may wish to use it. , ^ 

I have spoken of the practice of building castles in 
the air, — a practice which will be very apt to steal in 
upon you till it becomes a regular habit, unless you 
are very careful. You can hardly be too solicitous to 
keep cj^ar of this habit. I have also spoken of worse 
results of permitting the thoughts to wander when 
alone, — evils which want a name, to convey any con- 
ception of their enormity. 
21 . 



322 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Advantages of being- alone. The future to be aiV-icipated. 

There are many great advantages in taking frequent 
opportunities of employing your thoughts alone. 

The mind and feehngs are soothed by the pro- 
cess ; and this is an object every way desirable. Who 
can rush into the responsibilities, the anxieties, and 
the labors of the student without strong excitement? 
Who can see the field of knowledge continually and 
boundlessly opening before him, with multitudes who, 
like himself, have staked their character, hopes and 
happiness upon success, ready to compete with him, 
without having the excitement continually increasing 
and growing upon him ? There will be httle disap- 
pointments frequently, little trials, mistakes, which 
harass and vex you beyond measure. You need sea- 
sons of meditation, by which the feelings become 
soothed and softened, and the judgment rendered 
clear and decided. 

The future lies before you. It will come — rit will 
bring changes to you ; some of them will be severe 
and heavy to bear. There will be sorrows and dis- 
appointments in your progress. You need to anti- 
cipate the future, so far as you can do it by sitting 
down and looking calmly at the possible events which 
may be before you. He who never looks out ^d an- 
ticipates a storm, will be but poorly prepared to meet 
it when it comes. 1 do not mean that you should go 
into the future, and there take a possible calamity, and 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL 323 

Yourself your own teacher. 

then grapple with it as with your destiny, and thus 
mentally endure evils which probably will never 
come ; for no one is likely to hit upon the real evils 
which will overtake him ; but I mean that the thought- 
less man, who never communes with himself, is the 
man who meets troubles with the least resignation. 

You have plans, too, for the future, which need to 
be laid in your own bosom first — matured there — re- 
viewed there till they are perfected, under all the 
light which frequent contemplations can throw upon 
them. Your thoughts, while alone, are the best 
instr^uments with which to ripen the fruit of future 
exertions. 

Some are afraid of themselves, and dread few things 
more than to find themselves alone. Every thought 
of the past or of the future only discourages ; and 
they can be comfortable only by forgetting themselves. 
But this is not wise. Were it possible for a friend to 
whisper all your faihngs, deficiencies and faults into 
your ear, without wounding your feelings, and caus- 
ing you to revolt under the discipline, it would be an 
invaluable blessing to you. What such a friend might 
do, you can do for yourself, by your thoughts, when 
alone, and that without any mortification. A man can 
thus be his own teacher, and, after repeated trials, 
can weigh his actions, conduct and character very 
accurately. 

He who does not know himself, will never be ready 



■J24 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

. ^ — : 

Study your own character. You will find deficiencies. 

SO to make allowances for others, as to be greatly be- 
loved. He will be in danger of being harsh and cen- 
sorious. While he who is in the habit of measuring 
himself, in the cool moments of retirement, will sel- 
dom fail of knowing so much of himself that he will 
regard with tenderness the failings of others. In 
Studying your own character, you have a wide Geld 
opening before you. You will fail of doing yourself 
any good, if, in looking at yourself, you do not make 
it your determination faithfully to reprove yourself for 
your failings and faults. Mark the places where you 
trip, and be sure to shun them the next time. Note 
every instance in which you trespassed upon the kind- 
ness, the feelings, or the rights, of others; and in all 
cases in which you have failed to observe the golden 
rule, reprove yourself with due seventy, and see that 
you amend. You will find that, at some particular 
places, you have shown a heart that was selfish or 
wanton — a temper that was revengeful and unkind — a 
spirit that was jealous, or envious, or malicious — a self- 
.^^riceii that was unpleasant — or a positiveness that re- 
quired others to acknowledge your infallibility. No 
one can be, alone, and look over his character, and the 
manifestations of that character, long, without seeing 
numerous deficiencies, and marking many places, at 
which he will set a guard in future. 

One of the best criterions by which to judge of your 
character, is, to examine the characters of those of 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 325 

No other way but meditation to correctly understand the divhie character. 

whose society you are especially fond. You will be 
more intimate with some than with others. They will 
be more hkely to flatter you ; and no better index can 
ever be found to a man's real character, than those 
who are his flatterers. If you can discover — and who 
cannot, if he tries? — who are most frequently flatter- 
ing you, it will be easy for you to see where you 
stand. In no moral excellence will you be likely to 
be above those who pay for your company by their 
flatteries. You can, in this way, most accurately 
know the state of your heart ; and in your hours of 
meditation you will be unwise to neglect to submit 
your life to this ordeal. 

By attention to your thoughts when alone, you can ob- 
tain what can in no other situation be obtained — definite 
and correct views of the character of God. No read- 
ing, or preaching, or conversation, can ever give you 
clear conceptions on this great subject, without medi- 
tation. From our mfancy we hear the character of 
God described ; we read the descriptions' of his charac- 
ter in his word ; but, after all, we are not likely to at- 
tach correct and precise ideas to this language, unless 
we reflect much alone. On other subjects it is not so. 
If, from your infancy, you should hear the character- 
istics of a steam-engine described, as you grew up, 
your ideas would become definite and settled by ex- 
perience. You would see the engine frequently, or 



326 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Sixth sug-gestion. Daily reading' the word of God. 

converse with those who had seen it. But our con- 
ceptions of the character of our Maker do not become 
definite by experience. The same terms may convey 
wrong impressions, all the way through life, if we 
never make this the subject of meditation. Let my 
young reader try it, and he will find that a single hour 
of close thought alone will give him views of the 
character of God which are more definite, clear, and 
satisfactory, than any thing of which he has ever 
made trial. 

6. Be in the daily practice of reading the word of 
God. 

The whole journey of life is a continued series of 
checks, disappointments, and sorrows. In 'other 
words, all the dealings of Providence towards us are 
designed for the purposes of moral discipline. On no 
other supposition can we reconcile his dealings with 
his infinite benevolence, or feel resigned in the cir- 
cumstances in which we are frequently placed. But 
those views of God, and of ourselves, which are essen- 
^ tial to our peace, and discipline of heart, are to be 
found only in the word of God. I have often been 
struck with a passage in the Travels of the cele- 
brated Mungo Park, describing his situation and feel- 
ings when alone in the very heart of Africa. " Which- 
ever way I turned, nothing appeared but danger and 
difficulty. I saw myself in the midst of a vast wil- 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 327 

Mung-o Park. 

derness, in the depth of the rainy season, naked and 
alone, surrounded by savage animals, and men still 
more savage. I was five hundred miles from the near- 
est European settlement. All these circumstances 
crowded at once^ on my recollection, and I confess 
that my spirits began to fail me. I considered my 
fate as certain, and that I had no alternative but to lie 
down and perish. The influence of religion, however, 
aided and supported me. I recollected that no human 
prudence or foresight could have arrested my present 
sufferings. I indeed was a stranger in a strange land ; 
yet I was still under the protecting eye of that Provi- 
dence who has condescended to call himself the stran- 
ger's friend. At this moment, painful as my reflections 
were, the extraordinary beauty of a small moss in 
fructification irresistibly caught my eye. I mention 
this to show from what trifling circumstances the mind 
will sometimes derive consolation ; for, though the 
whole plant was not larger than the top of one of my 
fingers, I could not contemplate the delicate confoi'ma- 
tion of its roots, leaves, and capsula, without admiration. 
Can that Being, thought I, who planted, watered, and 
brought to perfection, in this obscure part of the 
world, a thing which appears of so small importance, 
look with unconcern upon the situation and sufferings 
of creatures formed after his own image ? Surely not. 
Reflections like these would not allow me to despair. 
I started up, and, disregarding both hunger and fatigue, 



328 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Two revelations from heaven. A parallel between them. 

travelled forwards, assured that relief was at hand ; and 
I was not disappointed." 

This is a touching incident in the life of a brave 
man, and is beautifully expressed. But let us notice 
the fact that God has made two distinct revelations 
of himself to this world, each of which is perfect in 
its kind. The one is by his works, — so clearly re- 
vealing his eternal power and Godhead in these, that 
the very heathen are inexcusable for not worshipping 
him. The heavens, the earth, all his works, even to 
the little " moss " which lifts its humble head in the 
sands of the desert, unite in teaching his wisdom, his 
power, and his goodness. And it was very natural 
for Park thus to srain confidence and instruction from 
this microscopic forest, planted and watered by an un- 
seen hand ; but 1 am confident, that, had he, at the 
same time, looked at the other revelation which God 
has made, and drawn from the Bible, he would have 
had a confidence still stronger, and even joy in again 
committing himself to One who suffers not the spar- 
row to fall without his special direction. In the nine- 
teenth Psalm is a beautiful parallel drawn between 
these two revelations of heaven, and the superiority 
of the written most decidedly extolled. The monarch 
of Israel seems to have been walking on the top of 
his palace, on one of those clear, delightful evenings 
which hang over Palestine, ^nd contemplating the 
works of his Maker. He breaks out in praise, declar- 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 329 

Inspired eulogy. Uninspired eulogy. 

ing that the heavens and the starry firmament beam 
out the glory of God ; and looking down upon the 
earth, he says that every day speaks to the one that 
is to follow it, and every night to its successor — de- 
claring the character of God ; and though no speech 
is heard, and no language is uttered by the works of 
God, yet they reveal him through all the earth, wher- 
ever the sun shines. He then seems to forget all the 
brightness of the heavens and the glories of earth as 
he turns away to the word of God, — that better revela- 
tion of himself. His harp rises in its strains as he cel- 
ebrates that ; for here is a revelation which is perfect, 
complete, reaching the soul, commending itself to the 
conscience, gladdening the heart, enlightening the un- 
derstanding, enduring in its effects upon the soul, grat- 
ifying the taste, and, beyond all, restraining from sin 
and purifying the heart. This spontaneous burst of 
the sweet singer of Israel is probably the most per- 
fect eulogy upon the word of God which the world 
has ever seen. 

Perhaps the best uninspired eulogy .upon the Bible 
is from the pen of that masterly scholar, Sir William 
Jones. It was written on a blank page in his Bible, 
and also inserted in his eiohth Discourse before the 
Society for Asiatic Researches. " The Scriptures 
contain, independently of a divine origin, more true 
sublimity, more exquisite beauty, purer morality, more 
important history, and finer strains both of poetry and 



330 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Sir William Jones. Comprehensiveness of ihe Bible. 

eloquence, than could be collected, within the same 
compass, from all other books that were ever compos- 
ed in any a^e, or in any idiom. The two parts of 
which the Scriptures consist, are connected by a chain 
of compositions, which bears no resemblance, in form 
or style, to any that can be produced from the stores 
of Grecian, Indian, Persian, or even Arabian learning. 
The antiquity of those compositions no man doubts ; 
and the unstrained application of them to events long 
subsequent to their publication, is a solid ground of 
J)eHef that they were genuine predictions, and conse- 
quently inspired." 

Deists and skeptics, in swarms, have studied the 
revelation of nature, and professed to see and know 
God ; but from this source they draw no truths in 
which they can agree, no precepts which in any 
measure break the power of sin within the heart, no 
consolations which bow the will to that of God in the 
hour of suffering and trial, and no hope, that can sus- 
tain and cheer the soul when she is called to feel her 
house shake and fall in pieces. 

, " The Bible resembles an extensive and highly cul- 
tivated garden, where there is a vast variety and pro- 
fusion of fruits and flowers ; some of which are more 
essential or more splendid than others ; but there is 
not a blade suffered to grow in it, which has not its 
use and beauty in the system. Salvation for sinners is 
the grand truth presented every where, and in all points 



I 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 331 

The Scriptures must be read daily. Example of Elizabeth. 

of light ; but the pure in heart sees a thousand traits of 
the divine character, of himself, and of the world, — 
some striking and bold, others cast, as it were, into the 
shade, and designed to be searched for and examined, — 
some direct, others by way of intimation or inference." 

You cannot enjoy the Scriptures unless you have a 
taste for them ; and, to this end, it is absolutely essen- 
tial that you read them daily. Many have tried to 
read the Bible, and were entirely unsuccessful. They 
have obtained new editions, in different forms, and yet 
there was no enjoyment in reading. One reason was, 
that they never were in the habit of reading the Bible 
every day ; and unless you have this habit, it is in vain 
ever to hope to see or feel any of those, excellences 
which others praise. You could enjoy no study, if 
taken up only now and then. Every student knows 
that he feels interested in any study in proportion as he 
continues to attend to it day after day for some time. 
This is true of the mathematics, where the taste has but 
little to do. Take up Euclid once in a year, and look 
over a few propositions, and you feel but little interest 
in it. Open Shakspeare once in many months, and 
you read with no interest ; and the longer the inter- 
vals are between reading him, the less is the disposi- 
tion to recur to him. So of any other book. 

Perhaps few characters have ever had their time 
more fully engrossed with business than Queen Eliza- 
beth ; yet she is said to have found time to read the 



332 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Locke. Hints for reading the Bible. First hint. 

Scriptures daily, and to have acquired a decided taste 
for them. " I walk," says she, "many times in the 
pleasant fields of the Holy Scriptures, where 1 pluck 
up the goodlisome herbs of sentences by pruning, eat 
them by reading, digest them by musing, and lay them 
up at length in the high seat of memory by gathering 
them together ; so that, having tasted their sweetness, 
I may perceive the bitterness of life." 

A little before his death, the great Locke, being 
asked how a young man could, " in the shortest and 
surest way, attain a knowledge of the Christian religion, 
in the full and just extent of it," made this memora- 
ble reply : " Let him study the Holy Scriptures, espe- 
cially the New Testament. Therein are contained 
the words of eternal life. It has God for its author, 
salvation for its end, and truth, without any mixture of 
earror, for its matter." 

I would not only most earnestly recommend you to 
read the Scriptures daily, but would add a few hints as 
to the best method of doing it. 

(L) Read the Bible alone in your retirement. 

The reason of this is obvious. Your mind will be 
less distracted, the attention less likely to be called 
off, your thoughts less likely to wander. You can 
read deliberately, slowly, understandingly, and with 
personal application. It will soon become a delightful 
habit ; and you will shortly greet the lime when you 
are to be alone with your Bible, with as much interest 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 333 

Second hint — translation to be used. 

as if you were to be with your dearest earthly friend. 
No taste is so much improved by habit and cultivation 
as the taste for the word of God. There is a con- 
densation in language, a power in the poetry and elo- 
quence of the Bible, aside from its moral influence, 
which brinfjs the taste of the reader to its own stand- 
ard, with astonishing rapidity. 

(2.) For all practical pwposes in your daily read- 
ing, use the common translation of the Bible. 

For accurate and critical study, the student will of 
course go to the original, and to commentators. But 
to obtain a general knowledge of the revelation in our 
hands, and to cultivate the moral feelings of the heart, 
the common translation is incomparably superior to any 
thing else. It is of great importance to obtain such a 
knowledge of the Bible as you will obtain by reading 
it in order. I suppose the word of God was given in 
parcels, from time to time, as was best adapted to the 
state of the world, and best adapted to give us correct 
conceptions of the character and government of God. 
I would have one part of your time employed in reading 
the books in order, going regularly through the Bible in 
this way as ftist as your circumstances will admit. At 
another sitting, and in another part of the day, I would 
read some part that is strictly devotional, such as tlie 
Psalms, the Gospels, or the Prophets. No young 
man can be too familiar with the book of Proverbs. 
There is an amazing amount of practical wisdom 



334 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 



The book of Proverbs. 



Third hint — disposition. 



treasured up there ; and the young man who should 
have that at his command, will be likely to do 
wisely. All the proverbs and wise sayings of the 
earth can bear no comparison to those of Solomon 
for value ; and there is scarcely one of any value, 
the essence of which is not already in his. I would 
not recommend commentaries of any kind for your 
daily reading. They are like putting crutches under 
the arms of a« man nearly well. They will aid him 
now for a short time, but will eventually do injury. 
He who uses a commentator constantly will soon feel 
that it is essential ; that the Scriptures contain but little, 
while the commentary is rich ; and that he must rely 
upon it for all his opinions. What opinions you have, 
will also leave you at once ; for what comes easily, 
will be sure to go as easily. 

(3.) Read the Scriptures with an humble, teach- 
able disposition. 

The strongest of all evidence in favor of the inspi- 
ration of the Bible is the internal — that which \the 
good man feels. This, indeed, is such as no argu- 
ments of the infidel can shake. On other evidence 
you can throw doubts for a moment, bring objections 
which cannot at once be answered, suggest difficulties 
which perplex ; — ^but you may heap difficulties up 
like mountain piled upon mountain, and the good man 
feels that his Bible is from God. This is just as you 
would suppose it would be with a book from heaven. 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 335 

Difficulties in reading tiie Scripture. 

But, aside from this, there is evidence enough to cru^^h 
every doubt forever. It is well to measure the base 
and examine the foundations of the building, if your 
circumstances will allow of it ; but if you cannot do it 
just now, reserve it for some future time. But 3^ou 
cannot derive good from the Bible, unless you have an 
humble mind. A child might say that the sun and 
stars all moved round the earth ; that his reason taught 
him so ; and that it was befitting that God should thus 
form the universe. But the reason of the child can- 
not decide such points. You must not say that you 
can decide what and how much God ought to reveal. 
We cannot explain or understand the mysteries which 
hang around every grain of sand and every drop of 
water ; much less can we expect at once to have a 
revelation about a Being whom no eye ever saw, and 
a country from " whose bourne no traveller " ever re- 
turns, without meeting with difficulties and mysteries. 
Humility will teach us to sit at the feet of Revela- 
tion, and receive her instructions without cavilling. 
Reverence towards the author, the contents of the 
Scriptures, and our own everlasting welfare, demand 
that we read with humility. We must be docile. 
We are ignorant, and need instruction ; we are dark, 
and need illumination ; we are debased by our passions 
and sins, and need elevating. The torch of reason 
cannot enlighten what hangs beyond the grave ; the 
conjectures of the imagination only bewilder; and 



336 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Fourth hint — responsibility. Wh}'^ you may not neglect the Scripture. 

without receiving the Bible with the spirit of a child, 
you will conjecture, and theorize, and wilder, till you 
find yourself on an ocean of uncertainty, without a 
chart to guide you, a compass by which to steer, or a 
haven which you can hope to make. 

(4.) Read the Scriptures under a constant sense 
of high responsibility. 

If the book in your hand be the only revelation 
which has been made to man, and if God has spoken 
his mind and will in that, then you have a standard to 
which you can at all times bring your conscience, by 
which you can cultivate your heart and grow in puri- 
ty. You have a book which is able to fit you for the 
highest usefulness, — to point out the noblest ends of 
your existence, — the best method of attaining those 
ends ; — which can soothe you when the heart is cor- 
roding by vexatious cares, which can humble you 
when in danger of being lifted up by prosperity; 
which can sustain you when your own strength is 
gone, and which, after having led you as the star 
led the wise men of the East, through fife, will at 
last lead you to a world where the soul shall live 
and act in her strength, the mind be enlarged to the 
utmost of its capacity, and where your wishes will 
only be commensurate with ^your enjoyments. Can 
you neglect this book without doing yourself injustice? 
You are but of yesterday, and have had time to learn 
. 3[)ut httle of what is around you ; and without divine aid, 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 337 

Seventh sugg-estion. Faithful reviewing. Sickness. 

you never would learn what is the destiny of your 
nature, nor the path which lies before the soul in the 
eternal world ; but God has given you his own word 
to teach, to direct, and to sanctify you. If you have 
any thing of wisdom, you will read the Scriptures 
daily : if you do not do it, you may be sure the 
reason is, that you are so in love with sin, that you 
are unwilling to have a light poured upon you which 
would rebuke you. 

7. Be in the habit of faithfully reviewing your 
conduct at stated seasons. 

When these stated seasons shall be, and how often 
they shall recur, is not for me to say. But they 
should recur often, and periodically. A heathen 
philosopher strongly urged his pupils to examine, 
every night before they slept, what they had been 
doing that day, and so discover what actions are wor- 
thy of pursuit to-morrow, and what vices are to be 
prevented from slipping into habits. There are par- 
ticular times when, by the providences of God, we 
are especially called to examine our conduct, which 
are not periodical. For example, if the hand of 
sickness has been laid upon you, and you have been 
made to feel your weakness and helplessness, the 
time of your sickness and of your recovery should 
both be seasons in which to pause and hold close 
counsel with your heart. If you change places, go 

from home, or go to a new institution for study, such 

22 



338 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL, 

Changes in circumstances.- Examination of the heart on Sabbath evening. 

a change affords you the best possible opportunity to 
examine and see what habits, what moral delinquen- 
cies you ought to change for the better, — what have 
been the rocks of temptation on which you have split, 
— ^what the companions who have led you astray, — 
what the sins you have fallen into which would grieve 
your parents, which have pierced your own soul with 
sorrow, and which, if persisted in, will eventually 
destroy you for any service, in the holy kingdom of 
God. These changes in your circumstances ought al- 
ways to be made pausing places, at which you faithful- 
ly review all your life, and, with penitence for the past, 
and new resolutions, set out for a better life in future. 
But these are not the periodical times which I am 
especially urging. At the close of. every Sabbath, 
you should make a conscience of performing the duty, 
and retire and review the week which is now past. 
It is a good time. You have had the soothing rest 
of the Sabbath, and you are now one week nearer the 
hour of dying, and the hour of being judged. You 
have had the advantages of another week ; now is the 
time to see how you have improved them : you have 
had another week in which to influence others ; now 
is the time to see what that influence has been : you 
have had the responsibilities of forming a character,, 
under the highest possible advantages, for the service 
of God during the past week ; now is the time ta 
inquire how you have acted under such responsibili- 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 339 

A help suggested. Use of dreams upon moral character. 

ties. Make this review thorough, and be sure not 
to omit it once. If you allow the season to pass 
you without this close self-examination, you will be 
likely to do it again and again ; for there is no duty 
in all that pertains to the discipline of the heart so 
irksome as that of self-examination. Some will say 
that they had rather their friends would point out their 
defects. But why should you be like the child who 
asks for a looking-glass in which to examine his hands, 
to see if they need washing ? No doubt it is more 
agreeable to have a friend to do this, than to do it 
yourself; and for the obvious reason that you will see 
a thousand sins, and a thousand wrong motives, which 
his eye cannot reach. If I may be allowed to suggest, 
1 know of no one thing, aside from the Bible, so use- 
ful to aid in examining the heart, on these occasions, 
as Buck's Closet Companion. It is clear, brief, and 
to the point. Every question is searching ; and he 
who will use that little treatise in his attempts at ex- 
amining his heart on the evening of the Sabbath, will 
not lono; fail of bavins; definite views of himself, and 
very moderate views of his excellencies. Such a sea- 
son, too, is exceedingly well fitted to close the Sab- 
bath, and to fasten upon the soul those sacred impres- 
sions for which that day is especially designed. 

It has been said by some, that we can judge of the 
bent of our characters by examining every morning 
to see about what our thoughts have been employed 



340 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Review of night important. 

during the night, as it is supposed we shall, of course, 
when off our guard during sleep, go about the business 
which we should like best, if our inclinations might 
be followed. There may be some truth in this, but 
not enough, probably, to enable you to make it any 
criterion by which to judge of your character ; for 
every student knows that a noise like the falling of a 
pair of tongs, may hurry him away to the field of 
battle ; a single coverlet too much, may cause him to 
groan with a mountain upon him ; and a single move- 
ment of his bed-fellow, may cause him to commit 
murder — in his sleep. This much is generally true ; 
that, if you have a troubled night, you have either 
abused the body by eating or drinking too much, or 
tasked the brain by too great a draft upon its func- 
tions at a late hour at night. Dreams will at least 
indicate how much you are abusing your corporeal 
and mental powers. 

But Bt night — at the close of the day, when you 
have passed through the day ; have added it to the days 
of your existence on earth ; when its hours have fled 
to the judgment-seat and reported all your doings, all 
your words and thoughts — the day which must inev- 
itably have more or less effect in shaping your destiny 
forever ; — this is the season when you ought to review, 
most faithfully and most strictly, all your conduct. 
You may not at once see the advantages of doing so ; 
but they are really greater than language can describe. 



I 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 341 

Effects of the evening review. 

You will find duties omitted during the day; — will 
not the examination lead you to repent of what w^as 
wrong, and to avoid it to-morrow? You will find 
time wasted, an hour here, and half an hour there ; — 
will not the examination do you good ? You will find 
that you have spoken unadvisedly with your lips, — 
that you have saicji what will wound the sensibilities, 
either natural or moral ; — and ought you not to know 
of these instances ? You will find that you have 
sinned with the thoughts, and that you have spread 
out feelings which the Divine Mind, of course, must 
retain forever, and which were vile ; — will it not do 
you good to recall these instances ? Perhaps you 
have made one effort to resist temptation, and to do 
your duty ; — and it will cheer you to recall it. To- 
morrow you will be still more likely to b^ successful. 
Every man, at night, can tell whether he has made, or 
squandered, or lost, property during the day ; and so 
every one, by proper care, can tell whether he has 
gone backward or forward in disciplining his heart, at 
the close of every day. He who passes on for weeks 
and months without this frequent, faithful review, will 
wonder, at the end of these long periods, why he has 
not grown in moral character, and why be has no 
more confidence in his hopes for the future. The 
fact is, we may live, and be heathen, under the full 
light of the gospel, and perhaps, too, while we are 
cherishing some of its forms. But life will pass from 



342 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

The dying heathen philosopher. Eighth suggestion. Daily prayer. 

you while you are making good resolutions, and 
hoping to do better, unless you bring yourself to ac- 
count daily ; and when death shall come to call you 
away, you will find the touching and affecting lan- 
guage of the dying heathen philosopher most suitable 
to your case : — Fosde hunc mundum intravi, anxius 
vivi, perturhatus egredior, — causa causarum miserere 
mei : — " 1 was born polluted, I have spent my life 
anxiously, I die with trembling solicitude, — O thou 
Cause of causes, have pity on me." The pain which 
our deficiencies and sins give us on the review, will 
be salutary, desirable, and necessary ; and it is at a 
fearful ha^jard that any one under as great responsi- 
bilities as those under which we are placed, ever re- 
tires to rest without such a review of the day as I am 
recommending. 

8. Be in the hahii of daily prayer. 

Though much of the novelty of the style and man- 
ner of Johnson has passed away, yet his works will 
ever bear the impress of a great mind; and as long 
as the English language exists, he will stand high in 
the estimation of the student. Yet Johnson, as far as 
he was from enthusiasm, is found making use of an 
humble and beautiful form of prayer when taking his 
pen to write a work which will be immortal. The most 
distinguished authors — such, I mean, as have been , 
the most widely useful — have always sought the 
blessing of God upon their studies. Doddridge used 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 343 

Students especially need prayer. Excuse of having- no time. 

to observe frequently, "that he never advanced well 
in human learning without prayer, and that he always 
made the most proficiency in his studies when he 
prayed with the greatest fervency." When exposed 
to dangers which threaten the body, such as the perils 
of a journey, the malignant plague, the storm at sea, 
or the rockings of the earthquake, no one esteems it 
enthusiasm or weakness to ask aid and protection 
from God. But how many feel, that, when they sit 
down to study, when they are tempted to go astray in 
a thousand paths of error, when liable to have their 
opinions, views, plans, habits, all the traits of their 
character, wrong, they have no need of prayer ! The 
very heathen felt so much need of aid in their mental 
researches, that they seldom, if ever, began a study or 
a book, without invoking the aid of the gods. Surely 
the student who knows his dependence upon the true 
God, and who knows how easily the mind of man is 
thrown off from its balance, — how important it is that 
the mind be clear, and all its powers in full vigor, — 
will not feel that, as a student, to say nothing about a 
higher character pr destiny, he can do his duty to 
himself with forminof and cultivatingr the habit of 
daily prayer. 

I know that thousands, when pressed on this point, 
will say that they have no time, — their studies are so 
pressing, so urgent, that they have neither the time 



344 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Hints in regard to prayer. Regular hours. 

nor the spirit necessary for prayer. I reply, that it 
will not hinder your studies. On the contrary, the 
mind will be calmed, rested, and refreshed, by being 
daily turned off from your studies for prayer. Ask 
any distinguished man, who has ever tried both meth- 
ods of study, and he will tell you that he has been 
prospered in his studies in proportion to his faithfulness 
in performing this duty. What shall be said of such 
a man as Andrews, who was such a proficient in 
study, that he could read fifteen different languages, 
and yet never spent less than five hours daily in pri- 
vate devotion ? 

You will find, as I trust, the following hints of ad- 
vantage to you in the performance of this duty. 

(1.) Have regular hours of prayer. 

Habit, in regard to every duty, is of the fi^rst im- 
portance ; but for none is it more nnportant than in 
regard to prayer. You cannot walk and lift your 
heart to God, or sit in your room and do it, as well 
as to be retired. The direction of Christ, to enter 
the closet, was founded on the philosophy of human 
nature. Have particular seasons, and when the hour 
arrives, you will hail it as that which is the most 
pleasant in the whole day. The return of the hour 
brings to mind the duty, which might otherwise be 
crowded out of mind. System should be rigidly ad- 
hered to, in this duty, for the sake of insuring its 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 345 



Morning' and evening', the best time for devotion. 

prompt performancej and especially for the sake of 
enjoyment. No man ever enjoyed his religion who 
had not regular seasons devoted to prayer. 

(2.) These hours should he in the morning and in 
the evening. 

In the morning the mind is calmed; the tempta- 
tions of the day have not beset you ; the duties of the 
day have not filled the mind and begun to vex you. 
Before you go to the duties of the day, to its cares, 
and anxieties, and temptations, begin the day with 
prayer. Temptations you certainly will meet ; trials 
of virtue and patience will overtake you; and many 
times before night, you wull need the aid of your 
Father to shield you. Go to him, and ask his coun- 
sel to guide you, his power to uphold you, his pres- 
ence to cheer you, his Spirit to sanctify you. Then 
will you have done what is equivalent to half the 
duties of the day, when you have thus engaged his 
care and assistance. And when the evening comes, 
when you have done with the duties of the day, the 
body is wearied, and the mind is jaded, when th-e 
world is shut out by the shades of night, when you 
come to look back and review the day, when you see 
how many deficiencies have marked the day, how 
many imperfections - still cluster around you, how 
many sins stare you in the face, how little you have 
done for yourself or for others, or for God, the day 



346 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Examples of praying men. Conscience to be kept pure. 

past, then — is the hour of prayer. It will be sweet 
to feel that you have one to whom you can go, and 
who will hear you ; one who will forgive you, if you 
are penitent, and ask in the name of Jesus Christ ; 
one who will accept your evening sacrifice, and give 
you strength for the morrow, and gird you with his 
own righteousness. This hour, if rightly improved, 
will be like the cheering countenance of a most beloved 
friend. Take care that nothing comes between you 
and these hours devoted to God. " Think of Daniel, 
prime minister of Persia, with the affairs of one hun- 
dred arid twenty provinces resting on his mind, yet 
finding time to go ' into his chamber, three times a 
day, that he might pray and give thanks to God.' 
Think of Alfred, with the cares of monarchy ; of Lu- 
ther, buffeted by the storms of Papal wrath ; of Thorn- 
ton, encompassed with a thousand mercantile engage- 
ments, yet never allowing the hurry of business to 
intrude on their regular hours of devotion." 

(3.) jRTeep your conscience void of offe7ice in other 
respects, if you would enjoy prayer. 

If you are aware of any sin, be it what it may, in 
which you allow yourself, you may be sure that will 
ruin your devotional hours. Either that, or com- 
munion with God must be relinquished, and certainly 
wmII be. If you do not keep the Sabbath ; if you are 
light and foolish in conversation, jealous and censo- 



' THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 347 

Excuse of not being' a Christian examined, 

rious upon others, or given to the indulgence of vile 
thoughts and practices in secret, you cannot welcome 
the hour of prayer. 

It may seem strange to some of my readers, that I 
urge this duty upon them, when they do not profess 
to be Christians, or rehgious people. But am I to 
blame, if they do not even profess to wish to obey 
and honor their God ? Are they in any way above 
the reach of want, so that they need not prayer? 
What if you have no relish for prayer; will neglect- 
ing the duty cultivate, or even create, such a relish ? 
If you have lived so long under the government of 
God, under all' the advantages which you have en- 
joyed, under all the responsibilities which have been 
resting upon you, and still are living without prayer, 
are you in the path of duty to plead this neglect of 
prayer, as a reason why it should not be urged upon 
you ? Shall I be a faithful friend to admit this ex- 
cuse, and to allow, that, because you have so long 
tried to escape the eye of God, and have neither 
thanked him for his mercies nor asked him for his 
goodness, neither sought his friendship nor deprecated 
his displeasure, you ought still to be left, and no 
warning voice reach you ? No. And if you urge 
that you have not been in the habit of prayer, I as^ 
sure you that you are inexcusable ; that you are losing 
great peace of mind, and daily satisfaction in laying 
all your wants and trials before Him who can relieve 



i 
348 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Pray in Christ's name. 

them: you are losing those great principles which 
make character good, great, and stable, and you are 
losing opportunities which are passing away rapidly, 
and whose misimprovement will hereafter bring down 
great anguish upon you. 

(4.) Offer your prayers in the name of Jesus 
Christ. 

He is the only Mediator between God and man. 
He it is who sits with the golden censer in his right 
hand, and who ever lives to intercede for us. He is 
a great and a merciful High Priest, who can be touch- 
ed with a feeling of our infirmities. We have no 
righteousness of our own ; we can have no confidence 
in offering prayer in our own names. But he who 
has most of the spirit of Christ ; who comes near 
to him in his contemplations and devotions; who has 
the most exalted views of the Redeemer, and the 
most abased views of himself, — will enjoy most at the 
throne of grace. Your prayers will be cold unless 
they go from a heart warmed by his love. Your pe- 
titions will not be fervent unless you feel your need 
of an almighty Saviour. The songs which are the 
loudest and sweetest in heaven, we are told, are kin- 
dled by the exhibitions which he has made, of what 
he has done for us. 

(5.) Ask the assistance of the Holy Spirit. 

When God directs us to pray, it is not that he may 
sit at a distance, and, in the coldness of a sovereign 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 349 

Ask for the Holy Spirit. 

monarch, hear our prayers, and receive our homage ; 
but it is, that we may draw ourselves near to him, 
as one in a boat, with a boat-hook, would not draw 
the shore to the boat, but the boat to the shore. His 
promise of the Holy Spirit to those who ask him, was 
sincere ; and no gift can be compared to this. All 
that is done for man in the way of calling his atten- 
tion to eternal things, sanctifying the heart, and pre- 
paring the soul for the service of God here and here- 
after, is done by the Holy Spirit as the agent. Sol- 
emn warnings are given in the Bible lest we should 
abuse this last, best gift of Heaven. He is the Sanc- 
tifier to purify your heart, the Comforter to sustain 
and cheer in hfe and in death. Ask his assistance, 
and you will be shielded from temptation, trained for 
usefulness here, enlightened in your views, expan- 
sive in your feelings, pure in your aims, contented 
in your circumstances, peaceful in your death, and 
glorious in immortality beyond the grave. 



CHAPTER X. 



THE OBJECT OF LIFE. 



How many beautiful visions pass before the mind , 
in a single day, when the reins are thrown loose, and 
fancy feels no restraints 1 How curious, interesting 
and instructive would be the history of the workings 
of a single mind for a day 1 How many imaginary 
joys, how many airy castles, pass before it, which a 
single jostle of this rough world at once destroys ! 
Who is there of my readers who has not imagined a 
summer fairer than ever bloomed, — scenery in nature 
more perfect than was ever combined by the pencil, — 
abodes more beautiful than were ever reared, — 
honors more distinguished than were ever bestowed, — 
homes more peaceful than were ever enjoyed, — com- 
panions more angelic than ever walked this earth, — 
and bliss more complete, and joys more thrilling than 
v/ere ever allotted to man ? You may call these the 
dreams of the imagination, but they are common to 
the student. To the man who lives for this world 
alone, these visions of bliss, poor as they are, are all 
that ever come. But good men have their anticipa- 
tions — not the paintings of fancy, but the reahties 
which faith discovers. Good men have the most 



„ THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 351 

Visions of good men. Our visions a test of character. 

vivid conceptions. Witness those of old. As they 
look down the vale of time, they see a star arise, — 
the everlasting hills do bow, the valleys are raised, 
and the moon puts on the brightness of the sun. 
The deserts and the dry places gush with waters. 
Nature pauses. The serpent forgets his fangs ; the 
lion and the lamb sleep side by side, and the hand of 
the child is on the mane of the tiger. Nations gaze 
till they forget the murderous work of war, and the 
garments rolled in blood. The whole earth is en- 
lightened, and the star shines on till it brings in ever- 
lasting day. Here are glowing conceptions, but they 
are not the work of a depraved imagination. They will 
all be realized. Sin and death will long walk hand in 
hand on this earth, and their footsteps will not be en- 
tirely blotted out till the fires of the last day have melt- 
ed the globe. But the head of the one is ajready bruis- 
ed, and the sting is already taken from the other. 
They may long roar, but they walk in chains, and the 
eye of faith sees the hand that holds the chains. 

But we have visions still brighter. We look for 
new heavens and a new earth wherein dwelleth 
righteousness. No sin will be there to mar the 
beauty, no sorrow to diminish a joy, no anxiety to 
corrode the heart, or cloud the brow. Our charac- 
ters may be tested, in part, by our anticipations. If 
our thoughts and feelings are running in the channel 
of time, and dancing from one eaithly bubble to 



352 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

The youth returning from a whaling voyage. 

* 9 ■ 

another, though our hopes may come in angel-robes, 
it is a sad proof that our hearts are here also. 

Is there any thing of weakness in these hopes of 
good men ? Are we not continually seeking rest for 
the soul ? — A few years ago, a youth went up to the 
mast-head of a large whale-ship, and there sat down 
to think. He was the only child of his mother, and 
she a w^idow* He had left her against her wishes and 
remonstrances, her prayers and tears. He had for 
many years been roaming over the seas, and was now 
returning home. He was thinking of the scenes of his 
childhood, — all the anxious hours which he had cost 
that mother, — all the disobedience on his part, and that 
love on hers which no waters could quench. Would 
she be sleeping in the grave when he once more came 
to her door ? Does his home still look as it used to ? 
—the tree, the brook, the pond, the fields, the grove, 
— are they all as he left them? And his mother, — 
would she receive him to her heart, or would she be 
sleeping in death ? Would she recognize her long- 
absent boy, and forgive all his past ingratitude, and 
still love him with the unquenchable love of a moth- 
er? And may he again have a home, and no more 
wander among strangers? The pressure of these 
thoughts was too much. He wept at the remem- 
brance of his undutifulness. Troubles and hardships 
did not break his spirit, did not subdue his proud 
heart; but the thoughts of home, of rest, of going 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. , 353 

The dying thought of Hooker. The world under an immense mistake. 

out no more, suffering no more, engrossing the love of 
a kind parent, melted him. Is not this human nature ? 
And is it weakness in a good man to rejoice at the 
thought of that day, when death shall ,be swallowed 
up in victory ? wlien the Lord God shall wipe away 
all tears, and take away the rebuke of his people, that 
they may be glad and rejoice in his salvation ? "I 
am going," said the great Hooker, " to leave a world 
disordered and a church disorganized, for a world and 
a church where every angel and every rank of an- 
gels stand before the throne in the very post God has 
assigned them." 

The world, the great mass of mankind, have ut- 
terly misunderstood the real object of life on earth, or 
else he misunderstands it who follows the lisht of 
the Bible. You look at men as individuals, and 
their object seems to be to gratify a contemptible 
vanity, to pervert and follow their low appetites and 
passions, and the dictates of selfishness, wherever 
they may lead. You look at men in the aggre- 
gate, and this pride and these passions terminate in 
wide plans of ambition, in wars and bloodshed, in 
strifes and the destruction of all that is virtuous or 
lovely. The history of mankind has its pages all 
stained with blood; and it is the history of a race 
whose object seemed to be, to debase their powers, 
and sink what was intended for immortal glory, to the 
deepest degradation which sin can cause. At one 

23 

f 



354 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

The army of Xerxes. The crusade. 

time, you will see an army of five millions of men fol- 
lowing a leader, who, to add to his poor renown, is 
now to jeopardize all these lives, and the peace of his 
whole kingdom. This multitude of minds fall in, and 
they Hve, and march, and fight, and perish, to aid in ex- 
alting a poor worm of the dust. What capacities were 
here assembled ! What minds were here put in motion ! 
What a scene of struggles was here ! And who, of 
all this multitude, were pursuing the real object of 
life ? From Xerxes, at their head, to the lowest and 
most debased in the rear of the army, was there one, 
who, when weighed in the balances of eternal truth, 
was fulfilling the object for which he was created, and 
for which life is continued ? Look again. All Eu- 
rope rises up in a phrensy, and pours forth a living 
tide towards the Holy Land. They muster in 
the name of the Lord of Hosts. The cross waves on 
their banners, and the holy sepulchre is the watch- 
word by day and night. They move eastward, and 
whiten the burning sands of the deserts with their 
bleaching bones. But of all these, from the fanatic 
whose voice awoke Europe to arms, down to the 
lowest horse-boy, how few were actuated by any 
spirit which Heaven, or justice, to say nothing about 
love, could sanction 1 Suppose the same number of 
men, the millions which composed the continent which 
rose up to exterminate another, and who followed the 
man who was first a soldier and then a priest and 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 355 

Peter the Hermit. A wonderful example of avarice. 

hermit, and who has left the world in doubt whether he 
was a prophet, a madman, a fool, or a demagogue, had 
spent the same treasures of life, and of money, in try- 
mg to spread the spirit of that Saviour for whose tomb 
they could waste so much ; and suppose this army had 
been enlightened and sanctified men, and had devot- 
ed their powers to do good to mankind, and to honor 
their God, how different would the world have been 
found to-day! How many, think you, of all the then 
Christian world, acted under a spirit, and with an ob- 
ject before them such as the world will approve, and 
especially such as the pure beings above us will 
approve ? 

Look a moment at a few of the efforts which ava- 
rice has made. For about four centuries, the avarice 
of man, and of Christian men too, has been preying 
upon the vitals of Africa. It has taken the sons and 
daughters of Ham, and doomed soul and body to de- 
basement, to ignorance, to slavery. And what are 
the results? Twenty-eight millions — more than twice 
the population of this country — have been kidnapped 
and carried away from the land of their birth. The 
estimate is, that the increase in the house of bondao-e 
since those times, is five-fold, or nearly one hundred 
and seventy millions of human, immortal beings, cut 
off from the rights of man, and, by legislation and 
planning, reduce;! far towards the scale of the brutes. 
This is only a single form in which avarice has been 



356 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 



Ancient kingdoms. Experiment of paganism. 



exerting its power. Suppose the same time and 
money, the same effort, had been spent in spreading 
the arts of civihzation, learning, and rehgion, over the 
continent of Africa, what a vast amount of good would 
have been accomplished ! And at the day when the 
recording angel reads the history of the earth, how 
very different would be the picture, and the eternal 
condition of untold numbers ! If the marks of human- 
ity are not all blotted out from that race of miserable 
men, it is riot because oppression has not been suffi- 
ciently legalized, and avarice been allowed to pursue 
its victims, till the grave became a sweet asylum. 

I am trying to lead you to look at the great amount 
of abuse and of perversion of mind, of which mankind 
are constantly guihy. When Christianity began her 
glorious career, the world had exhausted its strength 
in trying to debase itself, and to sink low enough to 
embrace paganism ; and yet not so low, as not to try 
to exist in the shape of nations. The experiment had 
been repeated, times we know not how many. Egypt, 
Babylonia, Persia, polished Greece, iron-footed Rome, 
mystical Hindooism, had all tried it. They spent, each, 
mind enough to regenerate a nation, in trying to build 
up a system of corrupt paganism ; and when that sys- 
tem was built up — ^let the shape and form be what it 
might' — the nation had exhausted its energies, and it 
sunk and fell under the effects of misapplied and per- 
verted mind. No nation existed on the face of the 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 357 

The experiment of the Romish church. 

earth, which was not crumbHng under the use of its 
perverted energies, when the gospel reached it. Our 
ancestors were crushed under the weight of a Druidical 
priesthood, and the rites of that bloody system of re- 
ligion. 

Another striking instance of the perversion of mind, 
and the abuse of the human intellect and heart, is the 
system of the Romish church. No one created mind, 
apparently, could ever have invented a scheme of de- 
lusion, of degradation of the soul, the intellect, the 
whole man, so perfect and complete as is this. What 
minds must have been employed' in shutting out the 
light of heaven, and in burying the manna, which fell 
in showers so extended ! What a system ! To gather 
all the books in the world, and put them all within the 
stone walls of the monastery and the cloister, — to crush 
schools, except in these same monasteries, in which they 
trained up men to become more and more skilful in do- 
inof the work of ruin, — to delude the world with cere- 
monies and fooleries, while the Bible was taken away, 
and Religion muttered her rites in an unknown tongue, 
. — and all this the result of a settled plan to debase the 
intellect and mock poor human nature! And, when 
the Reformation held up all these abominations to 
light, what a masterpiece was the last plan laid to stiflg 
the reason forever! — the inquisition. It was reared 
through the Christian world: the decree, by a single 
blow, proscribed between sixty and seventy printing 



358 THE STUDENT'S MANUAl! 

Fate of Galileo. 

presses, and excommunicated all who should ever read 
any thing which they might produce. A philosopher 
who, like Galileo, could pour light upon science, and 
astonish the world by his discoveries, must repeatedly 
fall into the cruel mercies of the inquisition. The in- 
genuity of hell seemed tasked to invent methods by 
which the human mind might be shut up in Egyptian 
darkness ; and never has a Catholic community been 
known to be other than degraded, ignorant, super- 
stitious and sunken. Let light in, and all who re- 
ceive it rush to infidelity. But what a mass of mind 
has been, and still is, employed in upholding this sys- 
tem ! And what a loss to the world has it produced, 
in quenching, in everlasting darkness, the uncounted 
millions of glorious minds which have been destroyed 
by it ! If 1 could find it in my heart to anathematize 
any order of men, — and I hope I cannot, — it would 
be those who are thus taking away the key of knowl- 
edge, and preventing all within the compass of their 
influence from fulfilling the great object for which they 
were created. 

Was man created for ivarl Did his Maker create 
the eye, that he might take better aim on the field of 
battle? give him skill, that he might invent methods 
of slaying by thousands? and plant a thirst in the soul, 
that it might be quenched with the blood of men ? 
What science or art can boast of more precision, of 
more to teach it, to hail it with enthusiasm, and to eel- 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 359 

The spirit of war universal. Career of Buonaparte. 

ebrate it in song? Genius has ever sat at the feet of 
Mars, and exhausted his efforts in preparing exquisite 
offerings. Human thought has never made such gi- 
gantic efforts as when employed in scenes of butchery. 
Has Skill ever been more active and successful — has 
Poetry ever so kindled, as when the flames ' of Troy 
lighted her page ? What school-boy is ignorant of 
the battle-ground, and the field of blood, where ancient 
and modern armies met and tried to crush each other ? 
Has Music ever thrilled like that which led men to 
battle, and the plume of the desert-bird ever danced 
so gracefully as when on the head of the warrior? 
Are any honors so freely bestowed, or cheaply pur- 
chased, as those which are gained by a few hours of 
fighting ? See that man, who, so late, was the wonder 
of the world, calling out, marshalling, employing and 
wasting almost all the treasures of Europe, for twelve 
or fifteen years. What multitudes of minds did he 
call to the murderous work of war ! — minds that might 
have blessed the world with literature, with science, 
with schools, and with the gospel of peace, had they 
not been perverted from the great and best object of 
living ! Says a philosophical writer, speaking on this 
subject, "I might suppose, for the sake of illustration, 
that all the schemes of ambition, and cruelty, and in- 
trigue, were blotted from the page of history, — that, 
against the names of the splendid and guilty actors, 



360 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

A striking contrast supposed. 

whom the world, for ages, has wondered at, there 
were written achievements of Christian benevolence, 
equally grand and characteristic, — and then ask what 
a change would there be in the scenes which the 
world has beheld transacted, and what a difference in 
the results ! Alexander should have won victories in 
Persia more splendid than those of Granicus and Ar- 
bela ; he should have wandered over India, like Bu- 
chanan, and wept for another world to bring under the 
dominion of the Saviour ; and, returning to Babylon, 
should have died, like Martyn, the victim of Christian 
zeal. Cassar should have made Gaul and Britain 
obedient to the faith, and, crossing the Rubicon with 
nis apostolic legions, and making the Romans free- 
men of the Lord, should have been the forerunner of 
Paul, and done half his work. Charlemagne should 
have been a Luther. Charles of Sweden should 
have been a Howard ; and, flying from the Baltic to the 
Euxine, like an angel of mercy, should have fallen, 
when on some errand of love, and, numbering his days 
by the good deeds he had done, should have died like 
Mills in an old age of charity. Voltaire should have 
written Christian tracts. Rousseau should have been 
a Fenelon. Hume should have unravelled the intri- 
cacies of theology, and defended, like Edwards, the 
faith once delivered to the saints." 

We call ours the most enlio-htened nation on earth. 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 361 

Estimation in wiiich war is now held. 

inferior to none in owning the spirit of Christianity ; 
and we claim this as an age behind none ever enjoyed, 
for high moral principle and benevolent, disinterested 
action. But what is this principle in the great mass 
of mankind ! When clouds gather in the political 
horizon, and war threatens a nation, how are the 
omens received ? How many are there who turn 
aside and weep, and deprecate the guilt, the wo, and 
the indescribable evils and miseries of war? The 
great majority of the nation feel that the path of glory 
is now opening before them, and that the honor which 
may possibly be attained by a few bloody battles, is 
ample compensation for the expense, the morals, the 
lives, and the happiness, which must be sacrificed for 
the possibility. Let that nation rush to war for some 
supposed point of honor. Watch the population as 
they collect, group after group, under the burning sun, 
all anxious, all eager, and all standing as if in deep 
expectation for the signal which was to call them to 
judgment. They are waiting for the first tidings of 
the battle, where the honor of the nation is staked. 
No tidino;s that ever came from Heaven can send a 
thrill of joy so deep as the tidings that one ship has 
conquered or sunk another. 

Was it any thing remarkable, that, in the very 
heart of a Christian nation, a single horse-race brought 
over fifty thousand people together ? Were they act- 



362 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

A horse-race. Prostitution of mind unlamented. 

ing so much out of the character of the mass of man- 
kind as to cause it to make any deep impression upon 
the moral sensibihties of the nation ? 

Suppose it were known that a mind was now in 
process of training, which might, if its powers w^ere 
properly directed, be equal to Milton or Locke ; but 
that, instead of this, it will waste its powers in creating 
such song as Byron wrote, or in weaving such webs as 
the schoolmen wove. Would the knowledge of such a 
waste of mind, such perversion of powers, cause a 
deep sensation of regret among men ? or have such 
perversions been so common in the world, that one 
such magnificent mind might be lost to mankind, and 
no one would mourn? The answer is plain. The 
world has become so accustomed to seeing mind pros- 
tituted to ignoble purposes, and influence which might 
reach round the globe like a zone of mercy thrown 
away forever, that we hardly think of it as greatly out 
of the way. 

A generation of men come on the stage of action ; 
they find the world in darkness, in ignorance, and in 
sin. They five, gain the few honors which are easily 
plucked, gather the little wealth which toll and anxie- 
ty will bestow, and then pass avvay. As a whole, the 
generation do not expect or try to throw an influence 
upon the world which shall be redeeming. They do 
not expect to leave the world materially better than 



I 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 363 

The world left to sink. 

they found it. Why do we not mourn that such 
myriads of immortal minds are destined to pass away, 
and never to break out in acts of mercy and kindness 
to the world ? Because we have so long been so 
prodigal of mind, that we hardly notice its loss. 

For thousands of years the world has slept in igno- 
rance, or groped in utter darkness. Nations have 
come up, and bowed and worshipped the sun, or 
wood, or brass, stone, or reptile, and then have passed 
away. The heart of man has been broken by vain 
superstitions, by cruelties, by vileness, under the name 
of religion ; and, aside from the Bible, we see no hope 
that it will be otherwise, for as long a period to come. 
But does this immense waste, this immeasurable loss, 
for time and eternity, trouble mankind ? Is the world 
at work for its redemption, and disenthralment ? By 
no means ! A small portion of the Christian world 
alone have even looked at it with any interest. This 
small part are making some efforts. They are taking 
the gospel of God, and with it carrying the arts of 
civilization, the light of schools, the sacredness of the 
Sabbath, and the influences and hopes of immortality, 
to the ends of the earth. But how are these labors 
esteemed by the mass of society ? Where is the sym- 
pathy for the solitary missionary of the cross, as he 
takes his life in his hand, and goes to the dark places 
of the earth, full of the habitations of cruelty ? The 
world laughs at the idea that the earth can be re- 



364 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 



Who is great. Individual examples. The merchant. 

covered ; and, though lions and tigers are constantly- 
tamed, and the deadly serpent is charmed, yet there 
is no faith that the moral character of man is ever to 
be any better. The schemes of the missionary are fa- 
natical, the Bible is powerless as the cold philosophy of 
the world, and preaching has no power but that which 
depends upon the eloquence of the tongue which utters 
it. But the question is, How do you account for it, that 
the community at large so coolly make up their minds, 
that the world can never be any better, and eaclj one 
goes about his business, as if it were all of no sort of 
consequence ? I account for it, by saying that man- 
kind are supremely selfish ; so much so, that the situa- 
tion of a world lying in wickedness, does not move 
them — that the great majority of men always have, 
and do still, mistake the true object of life. 

" Nothing in man is great, but so far as it is con- 
nected with God. The only wise thing recorded of 
Xerxes, is his reflection on the sight of his army, that 
not one of that immense multitude would survive a 
hundred years. It seems to have been a momentary 
gleam of true light and feeling. The history of all 
the great characters of the Bible is summed up in this 
one sentence ; — they acquainted themselves with God, 
and acquiesced in his will in all things ; " and no other 
characters can be called great, with any propriety. 

Look at individuals. You walk down on the wharf 
of one of our large cities. You notice a man by 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL 365 

The politician. 

himself alone. He walks with a quick, feverish step, 
backwards and forwards, and, every few moments, 
looks away at that dark speck, far off on the " dark 
blue sea." He is waiting for that ship to loom up, 
that he may see his own flag at mast-head. For 
nearly three years she has been gone, and comes 
home now, probably, richly freighted. During all 
this time, he has followed her, in his thoughts, day 
and night : when it was dark — when the storm rush- 
ed — when the winds moaned— he thought of his ship ; 
and not for a single waking hour at a time has that 
ship's image been out of his mind.- His whole soul 
went with her ; and yet, all this time, he never lifted 
a prayer to Him who holds the winds and the waves 
in his hand : and even now, when his heart is swellino- 
mth hopes that are realized, still he thinks not of 
raising a breath in thanksgiving to his God; thinks 
of no acts of mercy which he will perform ; feels no 
accountability for his property. Is such a man, living 
for property alone, pursuing the real object of life ? 

Look at another man. He is walking his closet : 
his brow is contracted ; his countenance faded ; his eye 
sunken, and he is fall of troubled anxiety. He looks 
out of his window for his messenger, and then sinks 
down in deep thought. It would seem as if nothing 
less than the salvation of his soul could cause such an 
anxiety. He is a cunning statesman, a crafty politi- 
cian, and is now waiting to learn the result of a new 



366 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

The refined scholar. 

scheme, which he is now executing, with the hope 
that it may aid him in chmbing the ladder of ambition. 
He eyes every movement in the community, watches 
every change, and carries a sohcitude which, at times, 
must be agonizing. There are thousands of such 
minds, trying to make men their tools, regardless of 
means or measures, provided they can fulfil their great 
desire — exalt themselves. Are such men pursuing 
the real .object of life ? 

Look ao^ain. — There is a man of cultivated taste 

O 

and refined feeling. His soul is full of poetry, and his 
feelings alive to every charm that is earthly. He can 
look out on the face of the evening sky, or watch the 
tints of dawn, and admire such beauties; but his soul 
never looks up " through nature's works to nature's 
God." He can enter into deep communion with what 
is perfect in the natural world, but he holds none 
with the Fatlier of his spirit. Music, too, is his delight. 
He can eagerly give himself away to the melody of 
sweet sounds ; but, with all this, he stands without the 
threshold of the moral temple of God, and has no wish 
to enter in and eat the food of angels. The thorns 
which grow on Sinai are unpleasant to his soul ; but 
not more so than are the roses whicli bloom on Cal- 
vary. The blending tints of the summer-bow awaken 
a thrill of pleasure ; but the bow of mercy which 
hangs over the cross of Jesus, has in it nothing that 
can charm. He live?, plans, and acts, just as he 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL 367 

Thouglit of Pascal. Every one has an object. 

would were there no God above liim, before whom 
every thought hes naked. Is this man — this refined, 
cultivated scholar — pursuing the object for which he 
was created? And if every cultivated man on earth 
should do precisely as he does, would the world ad- 
vance in knowledge, virtue, or religion? Man was cre- 
ated for purposes high and noble — such as angels en- 
gage in, and in comparison with which, all other ob- 
jects sink into insignificance, and all other enjoyments 
are contemptible as ashes. 

The distinguished Pascal has a thought which is 
well worth examination, especially by all those who 
are censcious of livinof for other aims than those which 
ought to be the real end of life. " All our endeavors 
after greatness proceed from nothing but a desire of 
being surrounded by a multitude of persons and affairs 
tliat may hinder us from looking into ourselves ; which 
is a view we cannot bear." Probably few are con- 
scious that this is the reason why they so busily waste 
their lives in unworthy pursuits, though none can be 
» insensible of having the effect produced. 

Every youth who reads these pages expects to be 
active, to be influential, and to have some object of 
pursuit every way worthy of his aims. That object 
will be one of the four following — pleasure, wealth, 
human applause, or genuine benevolence. 

I shall not stop to dwell upon these. No argument 
need be urged to show how utterly unworthy of his ed- 



368 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

The appetites and passions. 

ucation, of his friends, and of himself, he acts, who so 
degrades himself as to make the appetites and passions 
of his animal nature the object of life, and who looks 
to them for happiness. Let him know that there is 
not an appetite to be gratified, which does not pall 
and turn to be an enemy the moment it has become 
his master. It makes him a slave, with all his degra- 
dation and sorrows, without any of the slave's freedom 
from thought and anticipation. You cannot give way 
to any appetite, without feeling instant and constant 
degradation ; and he who sinks in such a way that he 
despises himself, will soon be a wretch indeed. Con- 
science can be deadened and murdered in no way 
so readily as by such indulgence : the mind can be 
weakened, and every intellectual effort forever killed 
in no way so readily as in this. If you would at once 
seal your degradation, for time and eternity, and for- 
ever blast every hope of peace, greatness, or useful- 
ness, I can tell you how to do it all. You have only 
to cultivate your appetites, and give way to the de- 
mands of your passions, and drink of those stolen waters 
which are sweet, and eat of that bread, in secret, which 
is forbidden, and you may rest assured that you have 
chosen a path which is straight — but it is straight to ruin. 
The pursuits of wealth are less debasing, more re- 
fined, and every way more honorable. But they are 
not worthy of you. You can pursue wealth and cul* 
tivate selfishness at every step : you may do it with a 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 369 

Seeking- after wealth. Life of ambition. 

heart that idolizes what it gains, and, could it know 
that what it gathers to-day would continue in the fam- 
ily for centuries, and be constantly increasing, would 
idolize it still more. But here let me say, that if wealth 
be your object, you have mistaken your path. A 
student seeking wealth ! There is no situation in the 
land in which you could not obtain it easier and faster, 
than by study. No class of men are in so poor a sit- 
uation to become wealthy as students ; and no class 
of men, in proportion to their time, their labor, and 
their efforts, are so poorly paid as professional men ; 
and if wealth were my object, I hardly know of any 
business which I would not rather undertake as a 
means by which to obtain it, than either of the profes- 
sions, in this country. A student cannot become 
wealthy, in ordinary circumstances, without contract- 
ing his soul to a. degree which destroys all his claims 
to be a student. 

But the strongest temptation which will beset you, 
is to hve and act under the influence of ambition, and 
to sell your time, and efforts, and yourself indeed, for 
human applause. There is no stream so sweet as 
that which flows from this fountain. But you httle 
know the dangers which wait around the man who 
would drink here — the archers which lie in ambush. 
There are so many things to diminish the gratifications 
which ambition bestows, that, were there no higher, 
no nobler end of existence, it would seem dangerous 
24 



370 THE STUDENTS MANUAL. 

The vexations of the ambitious man. 

to pursue this. How many begin life with high hopes, 
with expectations almost unbounded, who, in a little 
time, sink down into discouragement and listlessness, 
because they find the tree higher up the mountain 
than they expected, and its fi*uit more difficult to be 
obtained I But suppose a rpan be successful, and the 
measure of his desires begins to be filled. As you 
come close to him, you discover spots which were not 
seen at a distance, and blemishes which the first 
glare of brightness concealed. These weaknesses are 
noted, trumpeted, magnified, and multiplied, till it 
seems astonishino- how a character can be great under 
such a load of infirmities. These are vexations ; they 
are like little dogs which hang upon your heels all the 
day, and which give you no peace at night. But 
these you can endure. You may live in spite of hav- 
ing every blemish, which your public character ex- 
poses, published abroad. But suppose you make a 
single false step, as you mount the hill — where then 
are you? How many, who have made the applause 
of men the breath of their nostrils, have seen all their 
hopes dashed, in the very morning of their lives, by 
some step which they took In furtherance of their ob- 
ject, but which, in fact, was a mistaken step ! The 
wheel was broken at once, and with It, their schemes^ 
and perhaps their hearts. But this is not the worst of 
what Is before you, If you live for applause. Admlra- 
tsofl for any thing on earth cannot endure long. It 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 371 

Admiration short-lived. Difficulties in sustaining a reputation. 

will always be short-lived ; and there is quite as much 
difficulty in keeping up a reputation, as in gaining it 
at the first. It takes us but a short time to say all our 
pretty sayings, and all our smart things. A reputa- 
tion which has cost you years of toil to obtain, is no 
less difficult to keep than to .acquire. If that reputa- 
tion be not still rising and increasing in splendor, it 
will soon begin to droop and decay. Your best ac- 
tions must become better still — your highest efforts 
must become higher still — or you sink; and, after all, 
do what you will, and as well as you will, still you do 
not more than barely meet expectation. You exert 
yourself, 'and you make a fine speech ; or you produce 
a masterly dissertation ; or you write an interesting and 
a valuable book ; and the question is, not whether you 
have fallen below the subject, or below yourself, but 
have you not fallen below the standard which others 
have capriciously set for you ? If you have, you are 
going down the hill, in fame. A man writes a book : — 
it is his first effort. There was no expectation about 
it. It is received well, even with applause. He 
writes another ; and now he is not to be measured by 
what he did before. He must be measured by the 
standard of public opinion ; and a reception ^vhich 
would raise a new author, is ruin to him. All this 
price you must certainly pay, if you live for the ap- 
plause of your fellow-Piien. They will bestow no 
more of it than they can avoid ; they will recall it as 
soon as an opportunity allows ; and they will feel that 



372 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 



No one satisfied with his reputation. Restlessness of ambition. 



neglect is your due, in future, as a counterweight to 
what has been so hberally thrown into the other 
scale. The pursuits of ambition are successions of 
jealous disquietudes, of corroding fears, of high hopes, 
of restless desires, and of bitter disappointment. There 
is ever a void in the soul — a reaching forth towards 
the empty air, and a lighting up of new desires in the 
licart. It seems to me to have been mere affec- 
tation in Caesar, who said — and his repeating it so 
often strengthens the supposition of affectation — that 
he " had enough of fame " — se satis vel ad natiiram, 
vel ad gloriam. vixisse. Few can believe that the 
emperor could have been sincere in this declaration. 

There are other vexations, and certain disappoint- 
ments, atten,ding him who lives for the good opinion 
of men, which are unknown till they come upon you, 
but which are distressing in the extreme, when they 
do come. That desire after fame which moves you, 
soon becomes feverish, and is constantly growing 
stronger and stronger. And in proportion to your 
desire for applause, and the good opinion of men, is 
your mortification deep and distressing, when applause 
is withheld. If praise elates and excites you, the with- 
holding that praise will proportionably sink your spir- 
its and destroy your comfort. I'ou are thus a mere 
foot-ball among men, thrown wherever they please, 
and in the power of every man; for every man can 
take away your peace,, if he pleases, and every man 
is more tempted to bestow censures than applause. 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 373 

Example of a disappointed man of ambition. 

One thing more. If you set your heart on the ap- 
plauses of men, you will find that, if you receive them, 
the gift will not, and cannot, bestow positive happi- 
ness upon you, while the withholding of them will 
clothe you with certain and positive misery. A disap- 
pointed man of ambition is miserable, not because his 
loss is really so great, but because his imagination has, 
for years, been making it appear great to him. I 
could point you to the grave of a most promising man, 
who lived for honors solely. The first distinct object 
on which he fixed his eye, was to be a representative 
in congress. For this he toiled day and night. He 
was every way worthy ;• but just as he was on the 
point of* succeeding, when the convention had met to 
nominate him, one of his best friends felt that such an 
appointment would interfere with his own schemes of 
petty ambition, and, therefore, he stepped in and pre- 
vented the nomination. The poor man returned home 
sick, cast down, and broken-hearted. The loss of that 
election certainly was not of any great consequence, 
but he had brooded over it till it w^as of immense con- 
sequence, in his view. The blow withered him, and 
in a few months he went down to his grave, the prey 
of disappointment. Is such a pursuit worthy of man? 
Is this the high end of life on earth ? A distinguished 
writer, who thus lived for fame, not only outlived his 
fame, but the powers of his own mind ; and many 
were the hours, in broken old age, which he spent in 
weeping, because he could not understand the books 



274 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Character of fame. 

which he wrote when young. What a picture could 
the painter produce, with such a subject before him I 

" We blush, detected in designs on praise, 
Though for best deeds, and from the best of men : 
And why? — because immortal. Art divine 
Has made the body tutor to the soul : 
Heaven kindly gives our blood a mbral flow ; 
Bids it ascend the glowing cheek, and there 
■ Upbraid that httle heart's mglorious aim, 
Which stoops to court a character from man : 
Ambition's boundless appetite outspeaks 
The verdict of its shame. When souls take fire 
At high presumptions of their own desert, 
One age is poor applause : the mighty shout, 
The thunder by the living few begun. 
Late time must echo, worlds unborn resound. 
We wish our names eternally to live. 
Wild dream ! which ne'er had haunted human thought, 
Had not our natures been eternal too. 
Fame is the shade of immortality. 
And in itself a shadow ; — soon as caught, 
Contemned, it shrinks to nothing in the grasp. 

Man must soar. 
An obstinate activity within. 
An insuppressive spring, will toss him up 
In spite of fortune's loads. 
And why ? — because immortal as his Lord. 
And souls immortal must forever heave 
At something great — the glitter or the gold — 
The praise of mortals, or the praise of Heaven." 

This brings me to the point at which I am wish- 
ing to come. This " something great," at which we 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 375 



The worth of ambition imag'inary. 



" heave," may be great in reality, or only great because 
we make it so. But while I have thus briefly tried to 
show you that in neither of the ways described will 
you find what ought to be the object of living, you 
will understand that there is nothing in the spirit or 
philosophy of the gospel, which throws the soul back 
upon herself without giving her any object upon which 
her powers may be exerted. If we would driv^e the 
love of pleasure, the love of wealth, and the love of 
human applause, from the heart, we do not propose to 
leave that heart cold and desolate, with nothing to 
cheer or warm it, or to call forth its warmest, holiest, 
noblest sympathies. Far from it. But what I wish 
is, that you may so iay your plans, and so pursue the 
object which you place before the mind, that you 
may have continued contentment and peace while pur- 
suing it, the consciousness of not living in vain, while 
your soul is expanding in all noble, heavenly qualities, 
and preparing for a destiny which is blessed with the 
pure light of immortahty. 

" At tibi juventus, at tibi immortalitas : 
Tibi parta divium est vita. Perimeiit mutuis 
Elementa sese et interibunt ictibus. 
Tu permanebis sola semper Integra, 
Tu cuneta rerum quassa, cuncta naiifraga, 
Jam porta in ipso tuta, contemplabere." 

He who has the advantages and the responsibilities 
of the student, needs to act under a motive which is 



376 THE STUDENT'S MANJAL. 

We need a high motive of action. A high standard is practicable. 

all-pervading, which guides at all times, in all cir- 
cumstances, and which absorbs the whole soul. It 
should be such as will lead to a high, noble standard 
of action and feeling, and as will call forth the highest 
efforts of the whole man, body and soul, in enterprise 
which will do good to men. There is but one motive 
which has these qualities ; and that is, to secure the 
approbation of God, and act on a scale which meas- 
ures eternity, as well as time. Under the hght of the 
Bible, with the wish to do what God would have you 
do, you will not fail of meeting and fulfilling the great 
object of life. 

You will ^turally ask here, is it practicable to 
have the high standard of acting for the glory of God 
constantly before you ? I reply, unquestionably yes. 

You know that we have the power of choosing any 
object on which to fix the heart, to look at the motives 
which should gather the affections around that object, 
and then we have the power of bending the whole en- 
ergy of the soul to the attainment of that object. De- 
mosthenes was an ambitious young man. He is 
thought to have had very little principle : but he fixed 
his eye on fame — on that species of popular applause 
which eloquence alone can command. The mark at 
which he gazed was high. From it he never turned 
his eye a single moment. Difficulties, which nature 
threw in his way, were overcome. He gave his heart, 
his soul, to seeking renown : he climbed up • a hill, 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 377 



Examples of a wrong standard. , Example of ihe right standard. 



where most would have slid down, and, with his own 
hand, he wrote in the book of immortality, at the top 
of the hill, his own deathless fame. His admirer, 
Cicero, tells us, that he always had a standard of great- 
ness before him which was unmeasured — infinite. 
He determined to stand by the side of Demosthenes. 
He labored ; he toiled ; he achieved the victory, and 
stands, perhaps, as high up the hill of fame as his 
master. He made himself. We often speak of self- 
made men, of high renown and wonderful deeds. 
What made them great ? What made Buonaparte the 
terror of the earth ? He fixed his eye on the domin- 
ion of Europe at least, and towards that goal he ran 
like a strong man ; and to it he would have attained, 
had there not been an Omnipotence in heaven which 
can make the strong man as tow. He made himself 
his own idol, and determined that the whole world 
should bow to it. 

What made Paul the man that he was ? It was his 
fixing his eye on one vast object, and never looking 
away. That object was, to bring the whole world to 
a knowledge of the gospel, to the obedience of the 
faith, and to lead them up the paths of life. No 
smaller object filled his vision ; and with such a pur- 
pose filling his soul, he could trample on earth, and 
walk upon the thorns which persecution threw in his 
path, as if they were roses. What made David 
Brainerd ? He forgot himself; he threw himself away ; 



378 ' THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

What is duty. Testimon}' of reason. 

he fixed his heart on bringing the wanderers of the 
desert to sing of redeeming mercy. For this he Hved, 
toiled, wore out, and came to his rest in the grave, till 
the morning of the resurrection. 

You know that this man has the power of fixing his 
heart on ambition, and dreaming over his schemes, till 
they swallow up every thing else; — that another can 
fix his heart on wealth ; and another on the pleasures 
of sensual indulgences ; and every man on the object 
which is most congenial to himself. Can you doubt 
that you have the power of making the glory of God 
the polar star of life ? — of living for it and to it ? — of 
rising high and strong in action? — high and bright 
in personal holiness, and having the image and super- 
scription of God engraven on your heart ? 

Is it your duty to make the will of God your only 
standard of life ? 

Ask your reason. What says she ? ''Shall 1 give 
my heart to seeking wealth, and the treasures of 
earth ? " No : it will take to itself wings and fly 
away. Death will shortly be here, and seize you 
with a grasp so firm, that you must let go of wealth. 
You sigh after gold deeply : you must shu^ your eyes, 
shortly, upon all that is called wealth. Remember 
that he who '' maketh haste to be rich shall not be 
innocent." But your soul spreads in her desires ; she 
thirsts ; she rises: and do you suppose that any amount 
of wealth which you can obtain will satisfy her ? Will 



' THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 379 

Testimony of conscience. 

the little time which it is yours, cheer the soul in her 
everlasting progress ? No: the bag in which you drop 
your gains will have holes in it. Every river which 
flows over golden sands, like the river of Egypt, will 
turn to blood. 

Ask reason, ^' Shall I give my heart to honors? — 
to seeking the notice of men ? — to draw their atten- 
tion by this or that effort? " How poor will be your 
reward for your pains 1 If you draw the eyes of man 
towards you, he will envy you. If you do not, you 
will be bitterly disappointed. There is no house on 
the shores of time, which the waves will not wash 
away ; there is no path here which the foot of disap- 
pointment will not tread ; there is no sanctuary here 
which sorrow will not invade. There is a home pro- 
vided for the soul, but you can reach it only by living 
for God : to none others than those who thus live 
will its doors be opened. 

Consult your conscience also. What does she say 
is the great end of life ? Listen to her voice in the 
chambers of your own heart. She tells you that 
there is only one stream that is pure, and that stream 
flows from the throne of God ; but one aim is noble 
and worthy of an immortal spirit, and that is to be- 
come the friend of God, so that the soul may wing 
her way over the grave without fear, without dismay, 
without condemnation. Tliere is only one path pass- 
ing over the earth which is safe, which is light, and 



380 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 



Advantages of the true standard. The soul is filled. 

which is honorable. It is that which Jesus Christ has 
marked out in his word, and which leads to glory. 
Let conscience speak, when you are tempted to waste 
a day, or an hour, or to commit any known sin, to 
neglect any known duty", and she will urge you, by 
all the high and holy motives of eternity, to live for 
God, to give your powers to him, to seek his honor in 
all that vou do. 

My young reader will now permit me to present 
what appear to me the motives which ought to bear 
upon the mind, to lead it thus to act — -making the 
honor of God the great end of life. 

We naturally love to have the soul filled. We 
gaze upon the everlasting brow of the mountain 
which rises beethng and threatening over our heads, 
and the feeling of admiration which fills the soul is de- 
lightful. We gaze upon the ocean rolling in its mighty 
waves, and listen to its hoarse voice responding to the 
spirit of the storm which hangs over it, and we feel an 
awe, and the emotion of sublimity rises in the soul. 
So" it is with the desires. There is something inex- 
pressibly delightful in having the mind filled with a 
great and a noble purpose — such a purpose as may 
lawfully absorb all the feelings of the heart, and kindle 
every desire of the soul. Who ever reared a dwelling 
perfect enough to meet the desires of the soul ? Who 
ever had a sufficiency of wealth, or of honors, when 
these were the grand objects of pursuit ? Who ever 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 381 

This standard engrosses the whole heart. Conquers sin. 

had the thirst quenched by drinking here ? And who 
ever had an earthly object engrossing the heart, which 
did not leave room for restlessness, a desire of change, 
and a fretting and chafing in its pursuit ? Not so when 
the glory of God fills the soul, and the eye is fixed on 
that as the great end of life. You may live near him, 
and draw continually nearer; and the soul does not feel 
the passion of envy, or jealousy, or disappointment, as 
she comes near the object of her desires. Having, in- 
creases the desire for more, and more is added ; for 
sin has no connection with the gift. They who are 
near the throne are full of this one thought, — how can 
we do most to promote the glory of Him who is over 
all, God blessed forever? No contracted plans, no 
trifling thoughts, no low cares enter their bosoms ; for 
they are already filled. 

Who does not, more or less, feel the burden of sin? 
Make God the object of life, and you will not sin as 
you now do. The word of life is choked by cares ; it 
is shut out by ambition ; it is treated with scorn, when 
the soul presses on for present gratifications. The 
tempter never has so complete mastery over you, as 
when you fill the heart with this world, and live for its 
rewards. ■ Not so when you live for your Maker. In 
vain he walked around the Redeemer, and heaped up 
his temptations ; he found no place in him — not a spot 
where he could lodge a temptation. Do you never 
lament, at the close of the day, that you have fallen, 



382 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL, 

Leads to activity. 

here and there, during the day? — that your heart is 
frozen and fearful, when you attempt to pray ? — that 
a dark cloud rolls in between you and the Sun of life ? 
Fill the heart with good, and evil is shut out. 

You need a principle which will lead you to be ac- 
tive for the welfare of men. Your reason and con- 
science may decide, that you ought to live for the 
good of your species ; and, at times, you may rouse 
up ; but the moving power is not uniform and steady 
You need a principle which will ever keep you alive 
to duty. You can act but a few days on earth. Be- 
tween every rising and setting sun, multitudes drop 
into eternity. Your turn will come shortly. You 
will soon know whether you are forever to wear a 
crown, or be clothed with shame and everlasting con- 
tempt, — soon know how briglit that crown is, or how 
deep that despair is. All the retributions of the 
eternal world will soon be rolled upon you, and you 
want a principle abiding within you, which will bear 
you on in duty, active, laborious, sejf-denying, widen- 
ing your influence, and adding strength to your char- 
acter and hopes through life ; but this principle is to 
be obtained only by seeking His approbation from 
whom you receive every mercy that has ever visited 
your heart, every joy that has cheered you, and 
every hope for which the heart longs. 

You love to see the results of your exertions in any 
cause ; but you cannot, in all cases in which you^ 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 383 

Shows valuable results. No waste of efforts. 

plan, and fill up your plans. You may determine to 
be rich, and yet die a poor man. You may long for 
distinction, and yet never have it. You may sigh for 
pleasure, and yet every cup may be dashed, and every 
hope flee from you. All things around you may for- 
sake you and elude your grasp. Not so if you hve 
for God. Lay up wealth in heaven, — and you may 
increase it daily, — and it cannot fail you. Try to 
subdue that temper, so irritable, so unholy, and you 
will find that, if you do it for the purpose of hon- 
oring God, he will give you strength. Try to con- 
quer that covetousness which is idolatry, and you can 
do it effectually and thoroughly by subduing the heart 
for the sake of living entirely to God. You ofier a 
prayer for men : — it shall not be lost upon the wind. 
You send a copy of the Scriptures to the destitute ; — 
it shall not be lost by the way-side. The messenger 
of mercy, whom you aid in sending abroad, will find 
the hungry, who will receive the bread of life. And 
when, at last, you come to be gathered to the home 
of prophets and apostles, and the spirits of just men 
made perfect, then will you still more clearly see the 
results of a life whose aim was to honor God. Then 
will the poor whom you fed, the sick whom you visit- 
ed, the stranger whom you sheltered, the distressed 
whom you relieved, gather around you, and hail you 
a benefactor. * 

You ought to act upon principles which conscience 



384 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Ensures the approbation of conscience. 

will, at all times and in all cases, approve. Do you 
know what it is to sit down to meditate, at the close 
of the day, and have something hang upon the soul 
like lead, — to have a cloud between you and the 
throne of prayer ? , Do you know what it is to lie 
down at night, and look back upon the day, and the 
days that are passing, and find no bright spot upon 
which the memory lingers with pleasure? Do you 
know what it is to lie on your pillov/ and feel the 
smitings of conscience, and have the heart ache, while 
the clock slowly measures off the hours of night? 
This is because conscience is at her post, calling the 
soul to account. She lashes, she heaves up the 
waves of guilt, till the soul feels like being buried 
under them.^ Do you not thus commune with your 
heart, at times ? But if you will live for God — wholly 
for God — conscience will soothe you, comfort you, and 
bring hope to your soul, even in your darkest hour. 
No friend can be found to supply the place of a peace- 
ful conscience. Men will give their property, their 
time, do penance, give their lives — any thing to ap- 
pease conscience. Let them live for God and his ser- 
vice, and she will not chide ; she will guide to the 
paths of peace and blessedness. The world will hon- 
or the man who lives for God. At times, men will 
shun the face of the pious, and profess to be disgusted 
with piety ; but they will garnish the sepulchres of 
prophets, while the bones of the wicked he forgotten. 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 385 

Obtains the approbation of the world — and of Heaven. 

The name of Howard will never perish ; nor will 
the name of Marty n, or Mills, Brainerd, or Hannah 
More ; while thousands of wicked men, with equal or 
more influence while living, die, and are forever gone 
from remembrance. But the approbation of men is 
of no consequence. You wish the approbation of 
Heaven. Though they are ten thousand times ten 
thousand, and their voices are without number, and 
though they enjoy the perfection of knowledge, the 
perfection of holiness, and the perfection of bliss, yet 
they are all witnesses — a great cloud — of your race. 
They bend over your pathway, as you run towards the 
New Jerusalem. Who would not be cheered, could 
he have the entire approbation of all his friends and 
acquaintances ? But, though you cannot expect this, 
you can have what is far better. You can have the 
approbation of all the redeemed, of all the angels in 
heaven, and of the eternal God himself; and this, not 
for an hour, a day, or a week, for a fleeting year, but 
forever ! The heavens shall depart as a scroll, and 
all things shall pass away, except the approbation of 
jrod. That shall never pass away. It would be 
ii'orth your life to have his approbation a single hour 
when you come to die ; but you will have him your 
Father, Friend, and Glory forever. Have you any 
doubt 'in your mind where wisdom would now lead 
you ? " My first convictions on the sul^tject of religion 
were confirmed from observing that really religious 
25 



386 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 



The dying mother. Feelaigs of an author m closing his book. 

persons had some solid happiness among them, which 
I had felt that the vanities of the world could not give. 
I shall never forget standing by the bed of my sick 
mother. 

" ' Are you not afraid to die r ' 

"'No.' 

" ' No ! Why does the uncertainty of another state 
give you no concern ? ' 

"'Because God has said to me, Fear not; when 
thou ]jassest through the waters, I will he with thee ; 
and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee ! ' 

" The remembrance of this scene has oftentimes 
since drawn an ardent prayer from me, that I might 
die the death of the righteous." 

It is a solemn season with a man who acts from 
conscience, when he comes to close his book, and bid 
his reader adieu. His motives may be good, yet it is 
human to err. He knows that he may have made 
impressions which may give a wrong bias to some, from 
which they will never recover. He may have wasted 
his strength, and his reader's time, upon some point 
of comparatively no importance, while that which was 
really of great importance may have been omitted. 
He may have disgusted where he hoped to instruct ;, 
he may have offended where he intended to impress. 
At any rate, he is about to send a book out into the 
world, which, whatever may be its fate, has given him 
the opportunity of doing good; and under that re- 



THE STUDENTS MANUAL. 387 

How the reader is entreated to act. State of the world. 

sponslbillty the writer must continue. If I mistake 
not, a sense of this responsibihty is now felt by the 
author of these pages. I have addressed a class of my 
fellow-men who will yield to none in point of respect- 
ability, prospective influence, and importance. 1 have 
tried to throw before them such hints as my own wants 
and limited experience have suggested ; and I am 
now about to take my leave of them till I meet them, 
face to face, at the last great day of assembling, where 
we shall all meet. I am speaking to you, reader, in 
your own behalf, and in behalf of a world which needs 
your influence, and your highest, holiest, efforts. Oth- 
ers-may talk of philanthropy and benevolence ; but who 
give their hearts and their energies for the salvation 
of the world, except those whose minds have been en- 
lightened, and whose hearts have been impressed by 
the truths of Christianity ? Who built the first hos- 
pital known on earth? A Christian. Who conceiv- 
ed the idea of free schools for the whole community? 
A Christian. Who are the men who have pushed 
civilization among the barbarous, who have broken the 
fetters both from body and mind, and created civil" lib- 
erty for man? Who ever made efforts, vigorous, sys- 
tematic, untiring, to spread free inquiry, to instruct the 
ignorant, to invigorate the mind, and raise the intel- 
lectual and moral character of mankind ? They are 
the enlightened men who act under the influence of 
the Bible. The only effort which is now making, on 



388 THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 

Much depends on students. Circumstances in which we are to act. 

the face of the whole earth, for the good of mankind, 
is making by the church of the hving God. Upon 
this, and upon this alone, all our hopes for the salva- 
tion of the world from darkness, ignorance and sin, 
rest. To the youth of our nation — to those whose 
minds are now in a process of cultivation and discipline, 
we now look for the spirits who are soon to go abroad 
over the face of the earth, scattered, like the Levites, 
among all the tribes, for the good of all. Upon these 
young soldiers of the cross do we look, as God's ap- 
pointed instruments for doing a great and a glorious 
work. If the mind of rnan shall ever be raised from 
its brutishness and debasement — if knowledge, human 
and divine, are to go abroad — if liberty is to wave her 
banner where tyranny now sits — if the female is ever 
to occupy the station for which she was created — if 
domestic happiness is to be known and enjoyed through 
the world, — the youth in our schools, who have been 
baptized by the Holy Ghost, have a great work to do. 
Never did young men approaxjh the stage of action 
under circumstances more intensely interesting — cir- 
cumstances which demand a regenerated, purified 
heart, a balanced, disciplined mind, a burning zeal and 
eloquence, and a love for doing good which many wa- 
ters cannot quench, nor floods drown. You tread up- 
on ground bought with hardships, tears and prayers; 
enfranchised by toil and blood ; amid institutions found- 
ed by the most devoted piety and anxious solicitude 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 389 

Responsibility of our situation. 

of our fathers. It is the land of the Pilgrims, — where 
the bones of more worthies sleep than were ever before 
buried in the same length of time. You enter among 
men in a country in its infancy. The nation is young 
— has all the joyous elasticity of the young giant — full 
of enterprise, growing in wealth, in population — increas- 
ing in daring experiments and hazardous enterprise. 
An experiment in regard to civil freedom, and the des- 
tiny of a nation let loose, with nothing to check or hold 
it but the intellisfence and the reliijion which are difFus- 
ed, — a nation let loose, and many centuries in advance 
of all other nations in the science of government, at 
least, and yet having the offals of all otlier Christian 
nations constantly floating to it, — is now making. 
You are to live and act among those who will give per- 
manency to our institutions, or :Vvho will begin the work 
of undermining. You are coming forward at a time 
when mind seems to be exhausting itself, and Genius to 
be leaving poetry, that he may aid in subduing matter, 
so that a score of miles may be reduced to nothing, 
and time and space so annihilated, that a journey 
through the length and breadth of a continent is only 
a delightful excursion. Nature seems to bend to the 
torturing ; and winds and tides, mountains and valleys, 
make no pretensions to being considered obstacles in 
the way of men. You are to act in a day when pub- 
lic opinion is omnipotent. A standing army retires 
before it, and marshals only in the shade of the 



390 THE STUDENT'S MANUAI. 

Power of reaching men. The Bible the great instrument. 

thrones of tyrants. Every thing is controlled by it ; 
and yet every one may do his part to mould that pub- 
lic opinion according to his pleasure. Every man has 
the best possible opportunity to do good or hurt. You 
may pen a sentence or a paragraph, and it will travel 
through the nation, into tens of thousands of families, 
and, in a few weeks, pass through Europe, and influ- 
ence millions of immortal heinous. You are cominsr 
forward at a time, and in a nation, where a good edu- 
cation is a sure passport to respectability, to influence, 
to office. No difficulties stand in your way. The 
teeming, busy millions of this land invite you to min- 
gle your destiny with theirs, and aid them to rise in 
virtue, in knowledge, and in religion, as they roll on 
towards the judgment-day. You have friends to cheer 
you on in every worthy enterprise, who will uphold 
your hands when they fall, encourage you when the 
spirits fail, share your burdens, and rejoice in your 
success. You come forward with the history, the ex- 
perience of all other nations before you ; and at your 
feet lie pictures of men whose example it will be hon- 
or, and glory, and immortality to follow, as well as 
of men whose example is. death. You have the Bi- 
ble, too, — that mightiest of all weapons, — under whose 
broad and powerful aid, individual and national char- 
acter soon ripens into greatness, and one wliich is, of 
all others, the grand instrument of blessing the world. 
Tens of thousands, breathing the spirit of that book, 



THE STUDENT'S MANUAL. 391 

Encouragements to action. Rewards of a life well spent. 

are already in the field at work, trying to bless and 
save the earth. Some fall — strong ones, too — " too 
much for piety to spare ; " but the plan is the plan of 
God, and the removal of this or that agent does not a 
moment retard his great plans. Under the full, the 
pure, the purifying light of the gospel, you are called 
to live and act. If you live for God, fulfil the high 
destiny which is before you, you have thousands all 
around you to cheer you onward, to strike hands with 
you, and go forward as agents of a benevolence whose 
aim is, to bring many sons and daughters to glory. 
Above you are the pious dead, watching around your 
steps, and ready to minister to your wants. And there, 
high above all principalities and powers, sits the ever- 
lasting Redeemer, holding a crown which shall shortly 
I be ypura, if you are faithful to him. He will be near 
\ 3'^ou. You shall never faint. Every sin you conquer 
shall give you new strength ; every temptation you 
resist will make you more and more free in the Lord ; 
every tear you shed will be noticed by your great 
High Priest ; every sigh you raise will reach his ear. 
Up, then, my dear young friends ! up, and gird on 
the armor of God. Enlist under the banner of Jesus 
Christ, and let your powers, your faculties, your en- 
ergies, your heart, all, all be his. Bright and glori- 
ous is the day before you ; white and full are the 
fields that wait for you ; girded and strong are the 
companions who will go with you ; beauti'^ "^.n the 



392 THE STUDENT'S MANUAIi. 

Conclusion. 

mountains shall be your feet, wherever they carry ti- 
dings of mercy. The state of the world is such, and 
so much depends on action, that every thing seems 
to say loudly, to every man, " Do something " — " do 
it 1 " — " do it I " Keep your heart with all diligence; 
break awa}^ from every sin ; repent of every sin ; live 
unto God ; and your reward shall be what " ear hath 
not heard, eye hath not seen, neither hath it entered 
mto the heart of man to conceive." 



CllOU 



■*!' 



